A New Beginning
by V.9.5
Summary: After Belarus is left alone in the snow, she is saved by England, who knows exactly how it feels to be alone. But a magical threat will strain their relationship to the max- and open Belarus's eyes to a whole new world. Will she survive in her new world... or will she die?
1. Chapter 1

KNOCK KNOCK.

"Brother. Let me in."

KNOCK KNOCK.

"Brother, please it's cold outside. I have nowhere else to go."

KNOCK KNOCK.

"Brother-"

"G-go away! I don't want to marry you!"

"Please, brother, I need somewhere to stay."

KNOCK KNOCK.

"Br-brother?"

KNOCK KNOCK. KNOCK KNOCK.

"Broth-brother? P-please, I need your help..."

"No! Leave me alone! I don't want you here!"

Belarus stood, in the cold, outside Russia's house. Her clothes were ragged, her hair a mess. Tears stained her face, as the once haughty and scary nation turned into nothing but a frightened girl, seeking the comfort of her family. She knocked again.

"I-I have n-nowhere to go... P-please let me in..." she pleaded one more time- and it was true. She had just been attacked. Her home had been attacked. Belarus the country was going up in flames. Her own injuries scarred her body, red, angry welts popping up everywhere as more of her country burned. If she didn't get medical help, or aid for her country then she would die. The cold began to get to her through her now-thin clothes. She clutched her own elbows, bringing in her shoulders for warmth, as she waited for a reply.

There was none.

Fresh tears rolled down her face as she stood staring at Russia's door. She understood that maybe he was little scared of her, but they were family! How could he turn her away when she needed him most? How?

A small spark of hope ignited as the door opened, and light flooded her face.

"Mr Russia says if you don't leave now he will have you arrested," the maid said. Belarus nodded, turning and leaving, her feet becoming buried in the new snow.

There was nowhere for her to go. Russia had been the last hope for her and her country. She staggered onto an empty street, sniffling. This was it. Belarus would fall, and she...

She would die.

The prospect of death scared her. Never had she been in a position where she couldn't turn things around, sometimes with help and sometimes without. She had no power, so she couldn't scare the other countries into helping her, and she had no allies except Russia, having been so infatuated with him her whole life.

Her life. She had wasted it! She spent years and years yearning after a man who didn't- and wouldn't- love her. She never saw China... or Canada... She heard that the flowers in England were very nice at this time of year... Fuzziness began to appear on the edge of her vision, as more welts and bruises bloomed like unwanted weeds on her skin. She cried out, unable to hold in her pain. She could feel Death coming closer. Blackness ate away at her sight. She whimpered, gazing at the soft snow that suddenly was in line with her face.

If I am going to die, Belarus thought, I will die looking at the sky. With some effort, her final effort she believed, she rolled over, crystals already forming on her. Snow drifted down, cooling her heated skin. The sky, it was a greyish blue, as snowflakes danced around, falling from the heavens and bound to the Earth.

"Belarus?"

Blonde hair and thick black eyebrows. Green eyes looking at her. She tried to tell the stranger to move, that she wanted to see the sky, not his stupid face, but she was already unconscious.


	2. Chapter 2

BEEP. BEEP.

There were strange noises all around her.

BEEP. BEEP. WHIR.

What... what happened? Why was she alive? She knew that because she could breathe, and she could see-almost. She blinked, getting rid of whatever was blocking her eyes.

A white ceiling greeted her vision. Turning her head to the left, she saw a window overflowing with sunlight, and wallpaper that was blue with daises on it. To the left was a chair that had been pulled up beside her bed, a desk, drawers and a strange instrument hooked up to her pulse. Lifting her head she could see a cupboard and a table at the end of her bed.

Belarus tried to lift her arms, but they were heavy. After struggling a bit more, she stopped, weak from exhaustion, and fell back asleep again.

* * *

The next time she woke up, the beeping was gone, and so were the strange mechanical instruments. She felt a lot better than the first time, and sat up slowly, her body not too heavy anymore. It was later in the day, she could see that because the sun was less bright and less sunlight was in the room. She observed her surroundings again, this time going to the end of the bed, where there was a book.

It was called _Alice in Wonderland._ Belarus frowned, she had never heard of this strange tale before. On the front was a young girl and a rabbit with a watch. How weird. Maybe she was dead, or she was dreaming. She put the book down, noting her hair was tied back into a loose low ponytail. She touched it, feeling it's smoothness. So it was brushed then. But who had brushed it?

Next, she looked at her clothes. They hadn't changed, but the cupboard was open, and a new, green dress hung inside, more modern, with short sleeves and a skirt that dropped just below her knees. She shivered, finally starting to feel cold again. Well, whoever was here had left this for her... Not to mention she was cold...

A couple of minutes later, her ragged clothes were lying on a heap on the end of the bed, and she was staring at herself in the mirror. Every so often, she shivered, not from the cold, but from the overwhelming sadness and shock of everything that had happened to her. She looked at herself, at her new appearance. The dress that hugged her body at the top, but flared out into a skirt, completely modest. Her hair, which she had taken down (she didn't want to lose herself completely) that had a new green band in it. Her socks, which were black, matching new black shoes. She had completely changed. She sniffled again.

She turned away from the mirror, unable to bear it. Slowly and quietly, she moved towards the door, feeling her legs wobble from standing still too long, and because she still felt weak. Tentatively, unsure of herself, she opened the door, pulling it open. She peeked out, hearing nothing. The person who had saved her wasn't home yet. She stepped out of her room, looking down the corridor.

It was quite plain, with white walls and a railing to stop anyone from falling off the edge down below. She assumed she was on the top floor, because of the long flights of stairs going down. However, she passed the stairs and carried on looking at all the doors.

Trying each one, she found they were locked, but the bathroom and reception area were unlocked for her to use. She sighed, going down the stairs, and stopping on the first floor. Again, she tried each door, but only a couple were unlocked, a bedroom with a computer and a small living room. She headed down to the ground floor. Here, she found the doors were open, like someone had left in a hurry. The kitchen looked untouched, everything packed away neatly, but the living room was a little messier, with a book tossed hastily on the table and a cold cup of tea left next to it. The cushions were all squashed up one side, showing someone had been sitting there, and the remote was lying on the smaller table that was joined with the larger table, that was shoved underneath. A TV faced her, huger than she'd ever seen before. Whoever lived here was very rich.

She made her way through the living room, to the conservatory. There wasn't anything in here, except for the carpets she had seen all around the house and a few chairs perched by the windows. It was quite small in contrast to the rest of the house. There were two glass doors, which led out into the garden. When she tried them, they were unlocked and opened easily. The garden itself had green grass, with a forest at the end of it. There was no boundary cutting off the forest, but she didn't go in it anyway.

She went back inside, to the living room, when she heard the crunch of gravel outside, and a door slamming. She froze in her position, arms hugging herself. The person's keys clinked as he dropped it somewhere, and she heard him coming through. She braced herself, standing up a little straighter.

"Hello," she said, to England.


	3. Chapter 3

England had been more than a little surprised when he saw Belarus standing in his living room, looking scared and unsure. He hadn't expected her to be awake for another day or so. She had been in such bad condition that he had feared she might die, and hadn't left her side for the first day. After her pulse stabilised, he began to breathe again.

Then he had got to work on other matters- like her country. He had sent as much foreign aid as he could, in the form of doctors, nurses, builders, money, technicians and volunteers to help set up camps, while the girl recovered in his guest bedroom. He had sorted out all her paperwork, and then his. After that, he went to check on her again, brushing her hair so it wouldn't be too tangled.

Then he had gone out and bought her a new dress, thinking her own clothes looked a little bit too ragged. He wasn't sure what she liked, so he had simply gone up to the attendants in the department store and asked them.

"Oh! Your daughter is so pretty!" cooed one girl, smiling at him, and the picture he was holding up.

"Um.. well..."

"Don't worry, I know just the thing," she grinned, and had disappeared for about a minute, before returning with the green dress. "This will look perfect on her!"

"Thank you," he muttered, not really sure whether he should correct her assumption on Belarus being his daughter, or just to leave it. He had left it in the end, and had just bought the dress and left.

But the attendant had been right- the dress did look nice on her. She looked proper. England scratched the back of his head, trying to think of something to say.

"You look nice," he said finally. "How are you?"

"I'm fine," Belarus said. "Thank you for the dress." She looked at the ground. "What am I doing here?"

"You're here because I found you freezing to death in the middle of Russia," England said, only realising how harsh his words sounded when she winced. He had never seen the girl so vulnerable, and it scared him even more than when she was trying to convince everyone to become one with Russia. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be harsh."

He sat down on the sofa, inviting her to sit too.

"What happened to my country?" she asked.

England sighed. "I found you just in time. Your capital had nearly burnt to the ground, but the firemen came just in time from my country. I'm having everything rebuilt, so you won't have to face another disaster like that again."

"The earthquake..."

"Don't worry. We're having everything rebuilt and redone."

"W-we?"

"Our governments." England paused. "Your boss said to stay here until we get around to building your house again. You are welcome here," he reassured her.

Belarus rubbed her arms and sighed, putting her face in her hands. "What am I going to do until then? Nothing?"

"You still have your paperwork to keep up with," England offered, before his phone beeped. He picked it up and sighed. "Perfect(!) I have a world meeting tomorrow."

Suddenly Belarus jumped up. "Take me with you!" she shouted. England jumped, dropping his phone.

"OK, OK! I will!" He looked her up and down. "But you can't go like that... That's too informal..."

Belarus looked down at herself. "I don't have anything from home..." she whispered. "Everything was destroyed in the earthquake..."

England smiled sadly. "That's OK. We can go shopping, if you want." Belarus nodded.

"I'd like that." The girl had decided that until she could go back home, she would live with England. He had been kind to her when others were not; had saved her when Russia didn't.

Russia...

She hadn't given the nation a thought until he had mentioned the World Meeting. She wanted to face him, confront him. Why had he turned her away? Why had he left her? Why had a total stranger saved her, but not him? She was angry at him. Him and Ukraine. Ukraine had also told her to go away, not opening her doors either. God, how she hated them in that moment!

She was snapped out of it by England tapping her on the shoulder. "Belarus? Do you want to go now, or later?"

"Let's go now," she replied.

"By the way, while we're out, we have to call each other by our human names," England explained, while putting his coat back on. "Hmm, we'll need a coat as well..."

Belarus frowned. Then she said, "What's your human name?"

"Arthur Kirkland," England said, raising his thick eyebrows. "And yours is Natalya Arlovskaya, right?"

She nodded again, waiting patiently as England unlocked the door. Then, finally, Belarus stepped out into the light of the day.


	4. Chapter 4

It was bright. Very bright. And she was right, the flowers in England were beautiful at this time of year. They bloomed in every direction, colourful and dominating. Their presence alone made the world around her seem bright and beautiful. Unlike her country, with it's long, near unbearable summers, and freezing winters, the summer here had the sun shining and a pleasant wetness hanging in the air. She didn't get too hot though, because a cold breeze drifted by every now and then. It was like a heaven.

Quietness was another thing. She supposed all cities were loud and noisy and disruptive (having never been anywhere but Russia and Ukraine) but her countryside was just flat green land and even darker trees, with the odd mill or cottage. Sometimes there would be long grass, or corn, or maybe a muddy lake, but it was nothing to shout about. But here... It had rolling green hills filled with flowers that went to your ankles, tall old trees that held a sense of mystery and awe about them, and the cottages and lake houses were all old fashioned and blended perfectly with the countryside. The gravel path as well it was like a winding road leading to an adventure or a mystery of some sorts. There were no gates anywhere, the path just led straight up to England's house. Everything was completely natural. The birds sang quietly, even they didn't want to disturb the utter tranquility of the place.

The forest that loomed over England's home stretched further than she could see. She breathed in the crisp, new air that radiated off of it, feeling a freshness in her lungs she knew she would never get tired of. When she stumbled and fell, the softness of the ground protected her legs, just covering them with a bit of dirt. It was completely... There wasn't one word to describe it! Safe, loud but quiet, intimidating, natural.

"Natalya, we have to keep moving," England said gently to the girl. "I promise I'll let you look around when we come back." He took the girl's arm and led her down the path, down to the bottom of the hill. "Come on."

"It's... so..." she breathed, feeling her eyes weren't big enough. She kept looking side to side, wishing she had more than one head, and that maybe she could go back and explore that strange flower she'd seen a cou- wait what was that? She blinked and stopped abruptly. England turned back, frowning.

"Belarus? Are you OK?"

"I thought I saw-" she stammered, still looking at the bush. "Well- I- There was a rabbit and..." She drifted off. "No. It was nothing..." She shook her head to clear it and hurried forward in front of England. Behind her, England smiled. He knew exactly what she'd seen.

A rabbit, holding a watch, wearing a waistcoat.

* * *

They walked for about an hour, Belarus often asking about certain things, like the names of flowers or blinking because she'd seen something strange. England answered her questions patiently and pointing out new things she wouldn't have spotted without his help. To her, it was over too soon, because a city began appearing in the distance. She could hear the faint roaring of trains and the squeals of police cars and general human life. She sighed, disappointed.

"We'll have to take the train from here," England explained, and he walked towards a neat little place on the edge of the path. Belarus hurried to catch up with him, jaw dropping once she got inside.

From the outside it looked like a sweet little inn, but inside, it was the top of modern technology. Trains zoomed in and out of tunnels soundlessly, white fresh paint gleaming proudly off of them. These were the newest most eco friendly trains around, using only 12% fossil fuels and running on low power. The rails weren't electric at all. The trains were solar powered, so the roof was open, making it as bright as the outside.

Belarus boarded a train, seating herself on one of the comfy, organic seats. It smelt nice too, like cut grass and mints. England sat next to her, glancing at his watch. "This journey should only take about 20 minutes," he commented. "We'll be in the city by 4 and out by 6. Easy."

"Hey!"

Belarus and England both turned to see a boy with brown trousers and a white hoodie board the train. He carried a long thin stick over his shoulder. His hair and his teeth were both snow white, and his eyes were a ice blue. He sat opposite England. "Hey Arthur," he greeted casually.

"Hello Jack," laughed England. "It's good to see you again. How's the job?"

"Eh, same old, same old... A few icy parts here and there and more joy. You know, the usual," the 14 year old replied. He swung his stick round and round, throwing it lazily in the air and catching it again. Belarus watched him warily.

"Who are you?" she demanded to know. England looked around.

"Oh, Natalya I forgot! This is Jack. I'm a friend of his mother's. Jack, this is Natalya."

"Nice to meet you, Natalya," Jack said graciously, smiling at her. Natalya scowled at him, but nodded.

"It's nice to meet you as well."

"So what brings you here, Jack? It's not winter yet," England asked.

"Yeah, but there are meant to be some freak storms in Poland later on. I was passing through, so I thought I'd drop in."

"Yes... Although you'd better clear off before Seana shows up and blows a gasket. Thanks for the warning though. I'll call Feliks and tell him about the freak storms."

"I haven't seen Seana in a while. Where is she?"

"Last I heard she was over in Surrey, the one near Richmond. It's boiling hot over there apparently."

Belarus listened with some confusion. Freak storms in Poland? Seana? And if Jack was going to Poland, shouldn't he be on a plane? The confusion must have registered on her face, because Jack laughed when he looked at her.

"Aw, sorry Natalya," he said, scratching the back of his head, "It must real confusing. Don't worry- it'll make sense soon enough. Actually I'd better head off. See ya Arthur! Bye Natalya!" the moment the train doors opened, he was off, running through the station and out of sight.

"What was he talking about?" Belarus asked. England smiled.

"I can't tell you yet. This is our stop though, so we'd better get off!" The two got off, making their own way out of the station. "Come on; I know the perfect place to go." He took her arm and led her straight to the department store.

Belarus, on the other hand, was trying to slow down, gaping at all the extremely tall buildings, billboards, the people, the different styles... The wacky and weird and the perfectly normal were all gathered in one place. Vendors selling their wares shouted out to passers-by; groups danced in the street; gymnasts performed amazing feats.

Britain truly was a magical place.

She broke out of it, going into the store. So many clothes, everywhere! Usually, she wouldn't be bothered, wearing the dress Russia had given to her, but that was destroyed. Now she had the freedom to pick what she wanted, without having to please anyone. She looked around at the store, trying to find a place to start. Spotting an aisle of skirts, she grabbed his shirt sleeve.

"Come on," she ordered, and dragged him off to a long shopping session.

* * *

By the time it was 5, Belarus had still not chosen a formal dress for the World Meeting tomorrow. She was debating whether to go in the bright blue one she picked out that had a black lacy design on the back, or the knee length white skirt with a loose black top. And shoes! She hadn't even begun to think about shoes! She bit her lip, holding up each one against herself, trying to decide.

"Can we go back and look at the black one again?" she asked, turning around- to find England slumped against one of the seats and snoring, using the bags of shopping they had already bought as pillows. She put her hands on her hips and stalked forward. "ARTHUR!" she shouted in his ear.

The man shrieked, high pitched, jumping up and shouting, "It was America's fault!" Then he clapped his hand over his mouth. "Oh dear..."

Belarus tried hard not to laugh at his hilarious reaction, snickering behind her hand. England scowled at her. "And you! You shouldn't wake me up like that! That was most unladylike, not to mention downright _rude!"_

At this Belarus simply laughed openly, and although England tried to remain angry, he allowed a smile to grace his features. Then he was scowling again. "You can go and get whatever it is you want..."

Belarus walked over to the clothes rack- then stopped. "That's the one." England, coming over, raised his eyebrows at it.

"Are you sure?" he asked dubiously. "It will cause quite a stir at the meeting."

"Well that's what I want," Belarus replied, a creepy aura radiating off of her. England took a couple of steps back. "That is definitely what I want."


	5. Chapter 5

_8:00 am, world meeting_

"EVERYBODY! Do not panic, the hero is here!" announced America, bouncing in, nearly ripping the doors off their hinges as he pushed them too hard. "We can start the meeting now!"

"Non, Amerique, Angleterre is not here yet! It is most strange for him to be zis late!" France replied, worried. For all their arguing, fighting, shouting and constant death threats, at the end of the day, France and England were friends, good friends. And naturally, if your friend didn't turn up in time for you to annoy them until they burst a blood vessel, you would worry. Which is what France was doing. He tapped his chin, looking out of the window again, to see if England's car was there or not.

"If he doesn't turn up within the next 10 minutes, ve will start without him. Ja?" Germany said, shuffling his papers- only to realize Italy had one of them and was drawing again. "ITAAAALY!"

"~Ve~ Hello Germany!" Italy said happily, handing the piece of paper to Germany. "Look-a and see, I drew-a picture of you!" It was adorable, Germany and Italy playing football in a field of flowers. Germany turned slightly pink.

"Italy! How many times, do not draw on my world meeting files!" he said, though it was less angry and more affectionate as he took the piece of paper. "Danke, Italy."

"Prego, Germany!" laughed Italy, twirling in his chair. "And don't-a worry, I will use my scrapbook from now on!"

"Jou have a scrapbook, AND JOU'VE BEEN DRAWING ON MEINE FILES?" Shrieked Germany. He received no reply as Italy was still spinning in his chair. "Argh..."

Russia meanwhile, was creeping out China.

"Become one with me, China."

"Argh! No, aru! Please stop," begged China. "I won't become one with you!"

"HEY COMMIE!" America shouted, pointing at him. "STOP THAT!" Russia turned around and began radiating his dark aura.

"Ah privet, Amerika. Have you decided to surrender to me yet? Or will you continue your pointless journey for justice and freedom?" Russia said evilly. "You could be free... If you become one with me."

"NEVERRRR!" America screamed, punching the air. "America for truth and justice! Eagle scouts rule!"

Japan didn't look up from his manga. "I agree with America-san."

"Sorry I'm late chaps, I had a bit of a run in with some old friends," a British voice said. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked up.

England stood, hair messed up a bit, with his formal green uniform. In one hand he held his notes and the other was clutching the doorknob. "Oh, and I've brought someone along with me..." He stepped aside to reveal Belarus. Russia stared at her.

Belarus had completely remodeled herself. She still wore her hair down, but instead of the blue or black dresses she usually adorned, she wore a bright red, white and blue dress with matching shoes that had the English flag on them. Her hair band was blue, without a bow, instead it was plain. She stared hard at all of the countries, her gaze settling on Russia coldly.

"She insisted on coming along... and wearing that dress," England said nervously into the silence, as he began to walk to his usual place in the room. Belarus followed, head held high.

 _Don't let them see your country is weak,_ she told herself. _Stay strong._

She didn't look at Russia as she passed him, instead pulling out a chair next to England, sitting on it silently. France gulped, sitting on her other side.

"SO! Now that everyone's here, let's start the meeting!" America shouted, oblivious as ever to the atmosphere, especially the staring contest Russia and Belarus were having. "I have a brilliant plan to save the worl-"

"What are you wearing?" Russia said sharply to Belarus, ignoring America's "Hey!". Belarus scowled.

"What? Am I not allowed to make my own dress choices now?"

"You can wear what you want, but it seems strange to me- and everyone else I am sure- that you are wearing something so... _British."_ Russia glared at her dress in particular. Belarus smoothed it down proudly.

"Yes. I love it. Our governments have signed an alliance, we live together now. England is my big brother," she announced, laying a hand on England's arm. "And we have withdrawn our allegiance from Russia."

Russia growled. He had never been particularly fond of Belarus's 'marry me' comments, but she was still family, and he told her so.

"Then why did you leave me to die that night?" Belarus demanded to know. "My country was suffering- I was suffering, and you left us all to die, despite our agreement. Why should I remain faithful to you? England is the one who cared for me, helped my country, gave us strength! England, a complete stranger, helped me- when family did not!" By the end of her sentence she was shouting. "WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME TO DIE IF YOU CARE SO MUCH? HUH?"

Russia, to say the least, was shocked. He didn't expect such ferocity from one of his (former) sisters, especially considering how well they had got along (when she wasn't trying to marry him). He also didn't expect so much hurt to appear in her eyes as her accusing words bit into him. "I didn't..." For once, he was left speechless.

"Didn't what? Didn't want me? Didn't care about me? Didn't... love me?" She said the last part more to herself than anyone else, withdrawing her emotions once again, and settling for a scowl on her face. "Well, guess what? I've got over my love for you! From now on, I do things my way!" She crossed her arms and looked to the side, signalling that the conversation (well, argument) was over. Russia was angry, but he couldn't do anything, because her anger was justified. Not to mention she was with England... He had heard the country was a lot tougher than it looked. Especially since the personification had managed to hold it's ground against the attacks that had happened several weeks ago from rebels against the government. The rebels had believed that the government was bad for the country, and no one should rule it, and had targeted the world meeting, believing the presidents and prime ministers were going to be there- only to find one very furious England, who had been enjoying his tea and had been decidedly cranky that day. Anyway, by the time the other countries had got to his aid (England came really early for some reason) he was sitting on his chair, sipping his tea calmly as if nothing had happened.

Which one could believe if there hadn't been a pile of groaning bodies stacked against the wall.

Ever since that incident he had been decidedly wary of the small nation's strength, knowing that perhaps there was more to him- to _England_ \- than he actually revealed. So on this occasion he decided to back off, still radiating a dark aura. China quaked slightly.

"Alright, now that's done, we can start! Remember we can solve all our problems through excessive talking and shouting, no matter what!"

"I agree with America."

So the meeting went, except Belarus was also a part of it, and to her surprise she enjoyed it immensely. She talked a bit to Japan, who she found a bit closed off and laughed at Germany's reaction when he realized that Italy had brought his brother along and Romano was actually planning to destroy him.

"I'LL KILL YOU, POTATO BASTARD!" Romano screamed.

"LEISE!" Germany screamed back.

She didn't think of Russia once-or look in his direction.


	6. Chapter 6

**Just to clarify this is not a Belarus/England pairing. It's more of a family story, so sorry guest. I'm not really into that pairing but I guess I could write a fic or something about it if you want...**

 **Kayle X**

The next day, Belarus awoke to raised voices coming from downstairs. She lay in bed, her brain fuzzy from being awoken so suddenly. Then she snapped back into reality as someone shouted something particularly loudly. She sat up, straining to hear the voices more clearly. One was definitely England's, and she thought she recognized another, but she couldn't place her finger on it, or work out what was being said.

Quietly, she swung her legs out of bed, pulling her robe on. She slunk to door, opening it to hear better.

"-The West Region-"

"-have to get a-"

"-can't deal with it-"

Snatches of words floated up to her. She bit her lip, moving silently into the corridor and out onto the landing. There, she crouched low like a cat, ears perked up as she strained to hear what was said.

"There is no way in-"

"It's happening and we-" A door clicked shut from below and the voices got fainter again. Curiosity now fully perked, she trod downstairs, being careful to keep out of sight as she darted into the shadows next to the living room. She curled up quietly, ear next to the keyhole.

"Look. The energy signals are clearly there, they're coming back!" a nervous boy's voice said.

"If they are, why are we standing here discussing it? Let's go and send these motherfuckers back to-" Jack's voice floated over to her.

"Jack! The time for action is not now. You know what happened last time we jumped right into fighting. We almost lost-" England interrupted.

"But we won!" he snapped back.

'We got by on pure luck!" a female voice growled. "If it wasn't for my dust, we would all be dead, and you know it Jack!"

"Bella, really! And the rest of you! Can we get back to what we were talking about?" Romania's voice exclaimed. "This is serious!"

"Alright. I will make some tea," Norway replied, and suddenly, footsteps were coming to the door. Belarus jumped up and tried to make it look like she was just about to come in, and that she hadn't been listening to the strange conversation for the last 5 minutes. She placed her hand on the doorknob, pushing at the same time Norway pulled. Rather surprised (she hadn't known Norway was on the other side yet) She fell in, managing to turn herself over, landing on her back.

For a moment, she felt cold snowflakes brushing her cheeks and saw a night sky. Then, she was back in England's living room, with the man himself kneeling worriedly beside her. "Belarus? Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine," she muttered, unable to meet the man's eyes. She immediately felt very guilty for eavesdropping on the conversation, but that didn't stop her wondering... What were they talking about? And what did they mean by last time?

She looked up, inspecting the people before her. One was Jack, who was sitting awkwardly on the table, like he'd just jumped on it. The other two were Norway and Romania. Next to Romania was a girl with blonde hair tied up into a loose bun. She had a fringe hanging off the side of her face, and was dressed in a green top, green and yellow leggings and green sneakers. The air around her shimmered, especially just above her shoulder blades. She scowled as the other boy bumped into her in his haste to get to England.

"Who are you?" the last one said curiously. Belarus almost had to shield her eyes from him, because he was dressed completely in mint green, and had mint bunny ears on top of his head. Even his hair was mint green. She looked around, and eyes widening, she saw a fluffy bunny tail sticking out the back of his formal suit trousers. "Oh that... It's for decoration..." he mumbled, blushing.

"Minty! Don't just run up to people like that," England said wearily, like he'd had this conversation before. Minty nodded, but turned back to Belarus.

"Who are you?" he asked again.

"I'm... Belarus," she decided to say. If Norway and Romania were here, then that meant they knew about their true identities. "Who are YOU?"

"I'm Minty," the green boy introduced himself, he pointed at the blonde girl, "That's Bella." The girl nodded in acknowledgement.

"Here," Bella said, sticking out a hand to help Belarus up. "It's nice to meet you." Belarus took the hand.

"Ah... Belarus, these are some friends of mine. We've run into a bit of trouble, as you probably heard. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up," England explained apologetically.

"What trouble?"

"Nothing you should concern yourself with." He turned to Romania. "Romania; firepower." The man nodded, and began to leave. "Minty, go with him, they're going to need a pair of strong hands." Minty nodded and followed Romania out.

Belarus was growing ever more curious as she heard the conversation. "What trouble are we in?"

"Nothing much, " England said vaguely. "Jut a few accounts and old enemies back for revenge... Nothing to worry about."

The way Bella snorted made Belarus doubt that very much. England shot a glare at the girl before turning back to the map that was laid out on the table. It was a very intricate map, and didn't seem to be of the world. It was the sky, with constellations and galaxies mapped out carefully, and funny words written across planets. Belarus gazed at in wonderment.

A flash of light caught her attention. Next to the map lay a necklace with a purple crystal on the end of it, shaped like two triangles stuck together. Taped onto it, however was a vial filled with something that looked horribly like blood. Jack snatched it up when he saw her looking, grinning weakly at her. His eyes conveyed his worry though.

"Belarus; do you think you could help Norway in the kitchen a moment?" England asked. Belarus had no choice but to go. Nevertheless, after the door shut, she pressed her ear to the keyhole. What she heard next scared her beyond all recognition. The moment she heard it, she turned and fled, forgetting about Norway, forgetting about propriety, manners, tea and Russia. The words rang hard in her head, frightening and cold.

"Bella, Jack... I'm afraid... we are now at war."

 _War... England is at war... And I'm in the middle of it._


	7. Chapter 7

**I don't own Hetalia or Harry Potter.**

 **Kayle X**

England looked at his companions. Bella, otherwise known as Tinkerbell, in human size, her wings invisible. That was what the shimmer of air was. It was a concealing spell cleverly performed by England. She looked scared, but resolute. Her hands were in her pockets.

Jack, otherwise known as Jack Frost, the magical being who controlled wintertime, had begun hovering over the table again the moment Belarus had left. He dropped slightly, and so did the temperature in the room, signalling a rise in worry. He clutched his staff to his chest, the ends of it frosting over. For a moment, England was struck by how pretty the patterns were, and how the beauty of nature didn't change in the face of dark times. Then he snapped back to reality. He pinched the edge of his nose and sighed.

"We need a battle plan, you're right Jack. But not yet. First we need to alert the magical community. Send a message to Headmistress Sinistra at Hogwarts, and one to the Ministry. Then, I want you to spread the word all over Europe; we're at war. Understood?"

Jack nodded, flying out the window, at the same time becoming invisible.

"Bella, You're responsible for the rest of the world-"

"Hey, that's a lot bigger than Europe!"

"Bella, you're a fairy. You can ask your fairy friends to help you. And make sure word gets to Beauxbatons academy... I hear their Headmistress is formidable. We'll need as many people as possible."

Bella sighed, mentally discarding the concealment spell. Her wings appeared on her back, bright and blue. "What about you? What are you going to do?"

"Norway and I are going to Magic Club to brew some potions, it's the only place no one will think to look. The other countries think we play video games in there."

"What about Belarus?"

England facepalmed. "Ah, Belarus! What am I going to do? I can't be a big brother to her now! But I don't want to abandon her!"

"You could always, you know, _let her join the fight."_

England wheeled around to face her. "Let her join? Are you crazy!? She is too young to be-"

"I-I want to help."

England spun back. Bella gasped and hid her wings, but it was already too late- Belarus had seen them. She didn't exactly understand why Bella had wings, or why Minty had a bunny tail, or how the hell Jack managed to leave the house without her noticing, but she wanted to help. "I want to help you. You're family now," she told her big brother.

"Belarus." England grasped her shoulders. "I-I- No you can-"

"Don't tell me I can't!" Belarus said fiercely. "All my life I have been going after Russia, and people have always been telling me what I can't have! Flaunting it in front of my face! Hurting me! I've had enough! I want to fight back against what's hurting you big brother; because it will hurt me, and everyone I care about too! You've loved me more than anyone else in my entire life, and I won't stand by like a frightened little girl while you fall to your knees in front of your enemy! I WANT TO HELP!"

England gaped, open mouthed.

"Well... The girl has a point." Bella went forward, wings reappearing. "Welcome to the fight, Belarus."

* * *

Later that day, her, Norway and England were racing down a motorway to Hetalia High. England swerved and dodged, beeping his horn, and screaming obscenities at people who drove at the speed limit. Belarus hid a smile. So much for gentleman, then.

A few minutes later, they arrived, and the three ran in straight past the Newspaper Club. "Hey wait!" cried Italy, trying to stop them. "You have to sign in! ~Ve!~"

"Do it for us!" yelled Belarus, sprinting past, trying to keep up with the other two. England was practically tearing down the hallways, dust whipping up as he ran, and Norway wasn't far behind. Belarus was hot on his heels, following the flash of blonde disappearing around every corner. She burst into a dark room. For a moment, she thought she was in the wrong place, but then candles lit up all around her, lighting the mysterious place. She gasped.

It was majestic. With mysterious carvings all over the walls, and cages with lamps hanging from above, lighting the room just enough to see, but just enough to cover the secrets. The walls were midnight blue, and a huge moon loomed over her, floating by. She watched it go, eyes wide.

A flutter made her look around. There were some glowy dark things in a jar. With a start, she realized, the glowy dark things were fairies. "Hey, what are you doing here?" she muttered, and went to pull the lid off-

"Don't!" Norway's hand slammed against hers. "Those are evil fairies... The fae. Their idea of fun is to pretend to be lampposts and lead innocent people in the cars off cliffs or into children's bedrooms."

Belarus put it back, watching the fairies hiss angrily at her. They weren't so pretty anymore. She looked at the rest of the shelf. There were the usual witchy things; Cats legs, bat's wings, eyes of toads. Then there were some rather unusual things: A gooey moving substance, an empty bell jar, and a tube shelf with substances she decided not to question, mainly because some of them were blood.

She looked at Norway. "What is this place?" she breathed.

He smiled slightly at her. "Welcome to the Starlight Guardian, Belarus."

"Norway! I need carbon dioxide and parchment!" England bellowed from the next room.

"Getting it!" He turned to Belarus. "If you could grab some parchment, it's over there..." She wondered in the general direction of his finger pointing, and began looking for some. She managed to gather a little, but there wasn't a lot. So she just went to the cupboard in the hope of finding some.

"Oh!" she said, rather surprised when she found only old coats in it. Strangely enough, she could feel a breeze. She looked around, wondering if a door had been opened. The wind blew past her face again.

 _It was coming from inside the wardrobe._

Slowly and a bit curiously, she began to push past the coats..

"Belarus! Have you got the parchment?" Norway called from the other room. Belarus jumped out, shutting the cupboard behind her.

"Yeah, I've got them!" she shouted back, walking away from the cupboard, and entering the other room. This room was plain and simple, with a white pentagram drawn on the black floor, encased in a circle. There were strange letters and symbols inside each point of the star, and they seemed to glow as England, who was sitting in the middle, muttered words underneath his breath. He closed his eyes, one hand holding a leather-bound spell book and the other waving around in complicated patterns.

Norway grabbed the parchment from her, dumping most of it in the cauldron. Then he got the carbon dioxide (which looked like an empty jar) and poured that in as well. The mixture was a peach colour, she observed this as she leant over it.

She spotted another book lying next to it.

 _Potion for disintegration_

 _3 scrolls of parchment_

 _Carbon dioxide_

 _Magnesium_

 _Fae dust_

 _Sun/starlight_

"Starlight?" she mused. "Where on earth would they get starlight? The stars are in the sky."

"So are they," muttered Norway, carrying a covered jar. Even through the thick material she could see light coming through. She gasped. Starlight! "I suggest you look away. Starlight can blind people."

She turned her back, watching as the brightness cast a shadow of her figure. When he was done, she looked back, in time to see England turn completely golden.

"Big brother!" she cried, running forward- only to have her arm grabbed by Norway.

"Don't! He's in the middle of a spell!" he warned, and the two watched as wind began whipping around him, England's chants growing louder.

"Es mio dioel easdyt, kiesk moerthes," she heard him shout. "Dante jushf eind KOLBER!"

The pentagram lit up, light flickering on and off. Shadows danced against the wall, light bursting in little Catherine wheels and colourful explosions. Then it was over, and England was on his hands and knees, breathing heavily. He looked up, grinning tiredly.

"It's done!" he announced. I blocked the path through the underworld. That should buy us a little more time," he panted, staggering up and slumping in a chair. "Damn..." Belarus hurried over, slightly worried. "It's OK, Bel. It's just my magic tolerance. I kind of stretched it a bit too much."

She still hovered by him. "Is there anything I can do?" England opened his eyes and smiled at her.

"It's time to start your magic lessons."

* * *

"OK, we'll start with the levitation spell; it's the most basic of all spells," England said, placing a pen in front of Belarus, on her desk. She looked up at him from where she sat, confused.

"What? How am I meant to levitate that?"

England began to pace. "Every country has a magical community; thus, every country has magic. It tends to be the smaller or less known countries who have the most magical potential (minus Sealand). So," he said, stopping and looking at her with his intelligent green eyes, "You should be able to get this pretty easily."

The girl gulped, turning a bit white. "How do I do it?"

"However you want. Just remember though: there is no gravity acting on the pen. It's just a mass."

She glared at him. "But there is gravity on the pen! Otherwise it would be floating!"

"Exactly," he winked, and left her- presumably to prepare more potions.

Belarus sighed and put her head in her hands, allowing her hair to fall over her face. Gravity? Masses? What did he mean? Gravity was acting on the pen...

"Or is it," she muttered. She stared at the pen, committing the image to memory. Then, she closed her eyes. "There is no gravity. I control the mass. There is no gravity. I control the mass."

And slowly, the pen wobbled into the air, lifting and dropping a few cm at a time. It rose above her head, then zoomed suddenly to the other side of the room, before coming back and stopping in front of her nose.

She peeked through her eyelids to see if her method had worked- and nearly fell off her chair, because floating on front of her nose was the pen. She focussed her attention on moving it, and it flew around at an inhuman speed.

"Woah!" she muttered-then hesitated, before moving her eyes to her chair, and trying to lift that as well. It scraped the floor, making a horrible screeching noise, and she let go of the pen. "Come on..." She willed it up, not noticing a sweat breaking out on her forehead. It began to rise off the floor again. Water dripped off the end of her nose.

"Belarus! Stop!" yelled a panicked, but muffled voice. She ignored it. She was almost there.

"Sto-"

Blackness.


	8. Chapter 8

Belarus groaned, opening her eyes. For the second time that week, she was once again on a bed with medical things sticking out of her. Not to mention, this time she had a headache, and her hands felt like someone had chopped them up into little pieces. Thankfully, the room was dark, which receded her pounding headache a little. She became aware that she was wet, and the water was cold. What on earth? She was dry the last time she checked.

"RISE AND SHINE, BELARUS!" shouted a voice. Well, they probably didn't shout it, but it sounded like that to Belarus's ears. The curtains were ripped back, light filtering through her eyes and increasing her headache tenfold. She moaned unhappily, trying to turn on her side.

"BEL? BEEEEEEL?" the annoying whiny voice persisted. "WHY ARE YOU ASLEEP ANYWAY? THE STARLIGHT GUARDIAN ISN'T A PLACE TO SLEEP YOU KNOW!" She heard a crash, both in her mind and in the real world, as her headache reached her eyes, making them feel pressurized.

"Vladimir Lupei! What do you think you're doing?!" A second voice whisper-yelled, pulling the curtains shut again, but the damage was done- Belarus was awake and she felt just _awful._ She turned grumpily back, just in time to see England slapping Romania upside the head. Romania yelped and glared, rubbing his head reproachfully.

"What was that for?"

"You bloody know what for! Waking up Belarus! She clearly isn't ready yet!"

"Well, why is she sleeping here anyway?" scowled Romania. "This is Magic Club, not Siesta Club!"

"She's starting a magic course you idiot, and she overexerted herself," growled England. Belarus turned away from the feeble "Oh," Romania replied with, and looked at Norway instead, who was sitting on the end of her bed. He rolled his eyes at her, then glanced over at those two. He settled his face into his normal expression, which was a 'seriously?' face. The girl in bed was suddenly struck by how useful that default expression was when in the presence of the rest of the Magic Trio. She smiled slightly, closing her eyes to alleviate her headache- or at the very least, get the pressure off her eyes.

She jerked in surprise when something was inserted into her bare arm, and taken back out again. Her eyes flew open, and she looked down. "What did you just do to me?" she asked coldly, narrowing her eyes at Romania.

"It-it was just a potion to help with the pain!" he squeaked, slowly backing away. A part of her was pleased that she still managed to scare other countries; that she still had some dominance in the world; that she was not identified as 'England's little sister', but another part was disappointed, because she wanted, genuinely, to make friends. "N-Norway!" the nation yelped, fleeing behind his un-bothered friend. "Save meee!" The girl rolled her eyes, mirroring Norway. She knew who the 'Italy' of the group was, then.

"Are you alright?" England murmured softly, sitting by her side, worry in his green eyes. He lay a hand on her arm, the other smoothing out the covers unconsciously.

"Yes, England," she murmured back, sitting up, her hands feeling a bit better. "Although my hands feel weird."

"It's a common magical reaction," England explained. "Most wizards find it easiest to channel their magic through their hands, as they use their hands on a day-to-day basis. Your hands are simply powering up, that's all."

"B-but I focused with my mind..."

"Some wizards do that also. They use their eyes as a beginning point... Although hands are more useful, overall. You'll find it easier to use your hands from now on- a simple flick of the wrist should do it." To demonstrate, he pointed his finger at a book across the room, and indicated it to come towards them. It floated right off the shelf and came towards them, resting in England's hands. He pushed the book into Belarus's hands, smiling at her. She looked down at the old, hardback book in wonder. "Here, use it. You'll be able to hone your magic skills enough to take out a level 1 enemy."

"Level 1, big brother?" she asked, amused. "Sounds like you do play video games most of the time." He mock-glared at her.

"Right. We have a list of everything we need to do," announced Bella, randomly flying in. "Hey, Bel."

Belarus greeted her, gazing wide eyed at the elegant, Columbia-blue wings that fluttered proudly above her. They were nearly transparent, but they were so strong. Belarus wished she had wings like that; but then again, which human (or country) didn't wish they possessed the amazing power of flight?

"Ah great," England said, taking the list from her, and everyone gathered around to see it.

 _1\. Warn the world_

 _2\. Buy Natalya's books_

 _3\. Find Peter and yell at him for a bit_

 _4\. Buy scrying crystals_

 _5\. Kill demons_

 _6\. Hide everything from the other countries_

 _7\. Knock out America for Mission Z_

 _8\. Forge weapons_

 _9\. Cover for Art while he tutors Natalya_

 _10\. Get R+N to begin covering the stratosphere for extra protection_

Belarus stared at the list. Some things were so mundane, like buying her books, and other things were so weird (Kill demons? What?) that it was extremely strange to see them all written so causally side by side.

England took the piece of paper and made adjustments.

 _1\. Buy Natalya's books_

 _2\. Find Peter and yell at him for a bit_

 _3\. Kill demons_

 _4\. Hide everything from the other countries_

 _5\. Knock out America for Mission Z_

 _6\. Forge weapons_

 _7\. Cover for Art while he tutors Natalya_

 _8\. Get R+N to begin covering the stratosphere for extra protection_

"I'll get her books," Romania offered. "I'll fly in the stratosphere and start the magical process." Him and Norway stood up.

"I will begin setting up magical charms around our homes, and go with Romania," he announced, leaving. Bella flew up a bit as well.

"I'll get Peter, and I'll talk to Jack about asking Mother Nature to reduce his responsibilities," she said, "It was nice seeing you, Bel."

"Y-yeah, you too," she mumbled, suddenly feeling very small. England smiled lopsidedly at her, pulling her up from the bed. "Hey, what are you doing?"

"Well, someone has to do the rest after all... What do you want to do, kill demons or forge weapons? Wait, maybe we should get weapons first... Both of our magical tolerances are pretty low at the minute, aren't they?"

"Er, yeah," she stammered, taking out her knife from her pocket. "Is this OK?"

"Perfect!" the man exclaimed. "We can give it some magical abilities. OK, honey?"

Belarus's heart jumped. She smiled happily, flipping her knife in the air and catching it again. _He called me honey? Does this mean I'm a part of the family?_ Her heart warmed at the thought of a family who wasn't afraid of her, who didn't reject her in her times of need...

 _Snow drifted down, cooling her heated skin..._ Belarus blinked and the image was gone. She snuggled into England's side, opening her book to look for a suitable spell for her knife. England began to make some more (different) concoctions, sometimes sending her to get some stuff.

Meanwhile, cold, red eyes watched them from a mirror, or rather, watched England from the mirror. The eyes narrowed as it heard the chatter between the two.

 _"He's mine, Belarus..."_


	9. Chapter 9

_"He's mine, Belarus," hissed a deep male voice angrily. He watched England's every move very carefully, glaring daggers at Belarus whenever he wasn't looking at England. He wanted to snatch away the nation right there and then, but England had too many powerful allies... His allies weren't as strong as them. America, France, China, Norway, Romania, the flying girl, and judging by the way the flying one talked, he had many others, now including Belarus. He knew the Belarus in his world was a wimp, a stupid little girl, which meant this Belarus would be formidable, a worthy enemy, perhaps..._

 _"Well, you aren't going to get him with that temper," another, higher pitched (but male) voice said cheerfully. "Cupcake dear?" The first man chucked a knife at the second. "Tsk, tsk! Naughty, you shouldn't throw knives when you're angry! Your aim will always be off!" the second giggled, dodging the knife easily. He wafted the cupcakes in front of the first's nose. "Now eat, you've been standing there for an hour, watching him! You must be hungry!"_

 _"Fuck off," came the reply._

 _"Alrighty, then! I'll come back later... Matt must be hungry... You boys don't eat anymore and it worries me!" The second peered over the first's shoulder. "Oooooo, is that him? Eh, he's cute! Especially with that adorable little girl! I approve!"_

 _"I never asked your opinion old man!" the first man yelled, trying to hit the second, who dodged again, still balancing the plate of cupcakes on one hand. "Now fuck off! Go and bother Matt!"_

 _"Eh, okay!" the second giggled. "I'll tell him you said that!" he skipped away, humming lightly._

* * *

Belarus laughed. "That actually happened? You tried to curse America with Busby's chair-"

"And whenever I did, Russia would come and sit on it, interrupting my revenge!" England huffed, but he was smiling, sleeves rolled up as he took another axe and began layering it with magic. These were small spells, that wouldn't have too much effect on his tolerance. Belarus was still levitating small objects like knives to the box that lay on the other side of the room, while listening to England's story and handing him another weapon. The two were covered in dirt and ashes, having spent the last hour just using the fire to beat the weapons into place.

"It must have been frustrating," Belarus commented, watching as a particularly heavy weapon landed with a _clunk_ in said box.

"It was. Apparently, Russia has some kind of grudge against me. Well, I bet he does now... You saw how murderous he looked at the world meeting..." England said, a bit worried.

"Well, who are we making these for anyway?" asked Belarus, quickly changing the subject.

"Oh- the suits of armour at Hogwarts."

"... What?!" Belarus yelled, but before England could explain himself, there was a knock on the door. "I'll get it..." She mumbled, taking off her work gloves, shaking her head. She walked out of the forging/kiln room, closing the door behind her. The person knocked again. "All right, I'm coming!" She swung open the heavy doors...

... To reveal the Newspaper Club.

"~Ve~ Hello! We're here to interview you!" Italy smiled. Belarus glared daggers at him, and he shrunk. "~Ve...?~" he mumbled, hiding behind Germany.

"Ja, he's right. We need to interview this club again because our files were lost," Germany said, pen and notebook in hand. Japan snapped a picture of Belarus, trying to see inside the Starlight Guardian. Belarus stepped out, shutting the door behind her.

"This isn't a good time, Mr Germany," Belarus said politely. "Perhaps later?"

"Werr, the next issue of the newspaper is coming out tomorrow, so it has to be today," Japan said, pulling Italy out of his hiding spot.

Belarus sighed. "Can you just leave us out? I mean, all we do is play video games." Inside she smiled. There was no way she was playing video games...

"Well-"

"Belarus." Belarus turned.

"Russia," she acknowledged coldly. "What do you want?"

Russia took a step forward, unable to believe that this was his sister, who had been fawning over him a few weeks ago. She was completely cold to him, but she didn't radiate a very dark aura like usual. There was light dancing around her, as if she were very happy, but wasn't going to show it to him. "We need to talk."

"About what?"

"Our alliance-" he began.

"What alliance? I came to you in a time of need. You rejected me, breaking the terms of our alliance. I broke off and went to big brother England instead."

"You mean ran away!" he accused her.

"I did not run away! You are the one who ran away! The great Russia, running away from his dying family, accusing them of being traitors! Why should I give you my allegiance?! I don't even like you any more!" she snapped at him. "England was the one who helped me- and he still is! And guess what- I have never been happier!" She turned on her heel, wrenched the door to the Starlight Guardian open and walked away from him, making sure to slam the door as hard as possible.

Once inside, she took a deep breath, fighting back tears. Why did he have to come? Why was he harassing her this way? Before he was practically running away from her, now he wouldn't leave her alone. She hadn't told anyone, but she had about 35 missed calls and and so many texts from him, all asking her to come back, to sort out their differences. She had been protected with Russia but he hadn't made her happy and free- in fact she became obsessed, and unhappy, filled with meaningless longing.

But with England! England never held her back, all she had to do was ask, and she would receive- he opened her eyes to a whole new world, a magical one. She only truly felt alive when she was running through the green fields of the countryside, or being swept away in the cultural diversity of London. There, she felt like her problems were minuscule, just another thought, another mind whipping back and forth like crazy. She felt _happy._ England was, underneath it all, a very kind, but lonely man. Belarus, unknowingly, had attached herself to him because she knew how that felt. Now she would be fighting in the glory of war beside her brother, covered in her enemy's blood!

Well, she mused, locking the door, I never expected I would be fighting alongside England. But, times change, I guess. She smiled, smoothing down her apron over her ice blue dress.

"Belarus! Remember to lock the door!"

"Already have, England," she called back, running back into the forging/kiln room. "Now tell me why we are making weapons for suits of armour?!"

 **I just want to let you know, tomorrow is Eid, and I will be celebrating it with my family during the weekend as well, which means no updates. I hope you enjoyed the story, I don't own Harry Potter or any other fandoms.**

 **Early Eid Mubarak to all fellow Muslims!**


	10. Chapter 10

England grinned, watching Belarus throw a few more things into the cauldron as she made her first potion. He turned to his own potion, which was smoking pink fumes. Slowly, he stirred the potion, watching it go turquoise, then black, before putting it in a specially sealed container that was only used for potions. Then he put a black dot on it to tell the others that it was dangerous. He managed to fill 20 vials with his potion, making sure he marked each one carefully. He gathered about 5 of them and put them in his suitcase (which he had brought along). "How are you getting on, honey?"

Belarus felt a spark of warmth course through her at his words. "I'm OK, I guess... But this is more muddy brown than bronze..." she said worriedly, peering into her cauldron. "Is that OK?"

"Don't worry. As long as it's close, it'll work," England replied, and then he chucked her back her knife. She gasped.

The moment her fingers touched it, light glowed at the handle, and sparks flew. She felt magic course through her blood, heightening her senses. Her pupils dilated, and suddenly, she could see every last detail, from the smallest scratch on the table to the minuscule red dot on the wall. She averted her attention to her hearing- she could hear the silent breathing of a third person-

Wait.

Three.. people? She nearly dropped her knife.

"Belarus?" England asked, a little worried. She wasn't gasping in amazement or trying out her new-found powers- instead her eyes were flicking back and forth, as if she was looking for something. "Honey, is something wrong?"

"There's someone here," she muttered, desperately straining her ears to hear the person's breathing, but her magic rush had ended, and her powers lessened. "I heard them-"

"I believe you," England growled, picking up his bow and arrow. "Friend or foe?"

She glanced at him before returning her attention to the wall, where she heard it coming from. Violently, she slammed her knife through the red dot, unable to hear the pained yell on the other side, but she felt a satisfaction. "Foe. Definitely foe."

* * *

 _The red eyed man screeched in anger and in pain- but mostly in anger. He pressed his hand to his eye, trying to stop the bleeding as he glared at the knife edge which had gone through his eye. It was retracted a moment later, but that didn't stop him from slamming his fist against the wall. He felt humiliated._

 _"Stupid little bitch," he snarled, drips of blood still managing to run down his face. "How dare she... I'll make her pay... I'll break her to pieces and make her beloved England watch..." Blood fell onto his bomber jacket, but he didn't notice. He had been right- Belarus was a worthy opponent. She hadn't been afraid to make a move when she sensed danger._

 _"Oh, eh! What happened to your eye?!" shrieked the second man, the same as last time, as he entered the room. He no longer had cupcakes with him, but instead a bloody meat knife was held in one hand. "Ooooooh, poor little one!" he cooed, trying to pull the redhead to a chair so he could look at his eye. He was met with an angry swipe of a baseball bat. "That was rude!" he snapped, this time being more forceful, practically dragging the bleeding man to a chair and putting him in it. "Now let me see, cupcake baby..."_

 _"I am not a fucking cupcake baby!" yelled the first, although he did lower his hand, letting it fall onto the pink of the armchair. The second man giggled, adjusting his bow tie slightly and putting his meat knife down. He pulled a first aid kit from underneath the chair and began dabbing away at the blood._

 _"Sweeear jaaar! And while you're in my house, using my portal to spy on my counterpart, you are my cupcake baby!" he tittered. "It's not like Matt hasn't got a nickname! He's Mummy's yummy Jammy! Because you're both so CUUUTE!"_

 _The first growled from the back of his throat, trying to hold in his desire to bash the man to death. "My name is Allen, fucktard!"_

 _"Sweeeaaar jaaaaar! And don't be a silly cupcake baby," the man said, tying up the baby pink bandage into a little bow (not that Allen knew). "Pwecious cupcake baby! Oh, how I wish I could just smooch your pwecious cheeks all day!" he squealed, squishing Allen's cheeks between his hands. "Ah, if only you didn't declare independence..."_

 _Allen slapped the man's hands away, standing up. Why was it, every time he came to that house, Oliver would treat him like a baby? He shook his head as he stormed out, ignoring Oliver's squeals of laughter. "And put a 50 in the swear jar on your way out dear!"_

 _...He really needed to kill something._

* * *

Belarus pulled out her knife from the wall, dropping it in surprise. "Oh... oh my god!" she shouted, taking a couple of steps back, straight into the safety of England's arms. "Oh my god!" Her knife was covered in blood. "There was someone on the other side...! But...! Oh my god!" She began to hyperventilate, going weak at the knees. "They were watching us! God knows what they saw- or heard!"

England dragged her back, half carrying her to a chair. "Belarus. Honey, look at me," he said urgently. He was also very disturbed, but Belarus was full-out panicking. He could have a breakdown later. "Whoever they are, they're gone now. No person with half a brain would stay after being detected." He carefully placed his bow and arrow aside, taking her head in his hands. "And besides, if they want to hurt you... They'll have to come through me first."

Belarus pressed her shaking hands to her face. "Oh god... It's just... so... _creepy..."_ she muttered, trying to even out her breathing, but failing. She felt light-headed. She shuddered slightly, feeling England's arms go around her, rocking her slightly. Laying her head on his shoulder, she felt a bit better, a bit safer, but knew that she wouldn't sleep well that night. She focussed on controlling her breathing, trying to get her heart under control. The tough part of her brain screamed at her for being so weak, while the other part pointed out that this was England, her older brother, and she was allowed a few moments of weakness. Still she felt silly as she calmed down. "I'm sorry," she murmured, embarrassed, as England let go of her, green eyes assessing her condition.

"What are you sorry about, dear?" he said gently. Belarus looked up, surprised.

"W-well, for being so childish-"

"Belarus. I don't think you were childish. You had a perfectly natural reaction to finding out you were being watched. It's bound to disturb anyone."

Belarus smiled, ducking her head again. How was it that she felt like a child when England spoke to her like that, but she never felt angry at him for treating her that way? She supposed that England wasn't treating her like a naughty or sick child. He was talking to her, as he had done throughout the past 4 or 5 days. Just talking. It was nice, to just talk. To laugh freely, and say what she wanted, to smile. She felt like she could do that with England, somehow his presence was calming to her. He did seem like a grumpy old man on the outside, but as she got to know him more, she found he had his own sense of sarcastic, grumpy humour and a kind of fatherly air hanging around him. He was a mixture of a father and a brother to her, something she'd never really experienced.

With Russia and Ukraine, it had simply been negotiations or Ukraine and Russia running away from her, even when she wasn't in a 'marry me' mood and simply wanted them around. But with England, with the Magic Trio, she felt accepted, like she belonged. Everyone was quirky in their own way. England had powerful black magic, Norway was just serious or expressionless (she couldn't decide which one) all the time, and Romania simply ran around causing trouble and being generally annoying. They all had magic though, and that held her back. Did seeing ghosts count?

"I feel better now, big brother," she said, looking up at him. He smiled a little and stood.

"I think Romania is coming back soon... He can keep you company, if you want. He can be an annoying bastard, but his heart is in the right place, I swear."

Belarus laughed. "OK then. I don't mind."

"I'm baaaaack!" sang Romania, swaggering in with Norway trailing behind him. "I left FMB to the final prep, 'cause I'm lazy like that!"

"We got the books," Norway interrupted. "There's _Learn Defence: Basics_ _, Spell casting for Beginners_ and _The Foundations of Magical History._ Is that OK?"

"Perfect," exclaimed England. He glanced at the list, which he had kept in his pocket. "That means we have to kill demons now... Bella's gone to yell at Peter... And Mission Z will have to wait until everyone's here."

"Oh shoot! I forgot the scrying crystals!" wailed Romania. "What are we gonna dooooo?"

"We have a few here... I just wanted some more so Belarus could have a go, that's all. I'll take her to the magical world when I have time," England replied, "Come on Norway. Grab your broadsword." He pressed his hand against Belarus's cheek as a goodbye, smiling at her. Then, he left with Norway. Belarus sighed, closing her eyes briefly. She turned to Romania, who was hovering awkwardly by the door.

"Well," she said, looking down at her books, and deciding to go with _Spell casting for Beginners_ first, "Teach me."

Romania plonked himself nervously beside Belarus, grabbing _Spell casting for Beginners_ and flicking through it. "OK, um, let's start with this," he said, pointing at the page.

 _In order to cast a spell, the witch or wizard must be able to apply their imagination to the object they are using. After the first spell, it should become fairly easy to use their hands, although the witch or wizard must do so under strict adult supervision. It's very common that the unused magical energy within the witch or wizard's body will explode out of them, making it extremely dangerous to-_

"OK! Let's start!" Romania shouted, all nervousness gone as he grabbed Belarus by the hand and pulled her up. "Reading won't help you use spells at all. You've already done levitation right? That means we can try a few floating spells!"

"Mr Romania, I haven't read the guidelines, I think we should-"

"Nu conteaza! OK, on the count of three I'm going to jump out of this window," Romania hollered, wobbling on one of the window ledges in the main room. "You have to catch me using your magic!"

"MR ROMANIA NO! I'm not ready!" Belarus cried, beginning to panic. She was extremely on edge after her previous encounter, not to mention she was still worried and wondering what the end of that sentence was in the magic book. "Don't jump!"

"1-"

"No I can't!"

"2-"

"Stop! Let me finish the-"

"THREEEE!" screamed Romania, jumping out of the window. Belarus shrieked.

* * *

RINGRING! Norway answered the call.

"I didn't know phones worked here," whispered England from where he was crouched. Beyond them were a group of demons, and they had been preparing to attack. The demons were talking in their garbled language, and England listened intently for anything he could decipher- he wasn't too fluent in demon language, as it changed constantly. Norway simply shrugged, listening to what was being said on the other end.

After the call had finished, he shoved his phone back into his pocket. "Come on, we have to leave."

"What? What's happened?" England asked, alarmed. His first thoughts was Belarus, America and Canada. "Who got hurt?"

"Romania decided to jump out a window and broke every bone in his body..."

 **Nu conteaza- Never mind**


	11. Chapter 11

**Thanks for all the follows. I'm sorry I'm late with this, I got my dates mixed up. Here's an extra long chapter for you.**

 **Kayle** **X**

 _Some days later_

Belarus sat at the table, eating her breakfast quietly. She thought about what had happened over the last few days she'd been here. Romania had shattered every bone in his body, except his facial ones, which gave him the ability to talk ("Great... We'll have to listen to him whining now," groaned England). He had been in a full body cast for about a week, before he was released. Nations did heal faster than humans, after all. Belarus had been exceptionally upset, and a little guilty, since Romania trusted her to catch him, and she had failed. Not only to catch him, but her actual magic!

Norway had scoffed when she confessed her feelings to him, feeling too embarrassed to face England. "The idiot had it coming Belarus. When he read Twilight, he broke into America's house and covered him in sparkles. Naturally, America woke up halfway through and kicked him out so hard, he broke his butt."

"What?" she asked incredulously.

"I'm not lying... But Romania says he going to 'sparkle-ify' America any day now. I highly doubt it," Norway replied, like it was normal for a member of their trio to break into a house and sparkle up the person inside. "And it's not like England's completely innocent either... I remember the time our plane to a World Meeting broke down, so we flew there on his eyebrows... Those things are magical."

Belarus spat out her coffee, spluttering. Eyebrows?! Maybe ghosts weren't too bad then... "What about ghosts?" she coughed.

"Ghosts? Normal. If you don't get attacked by a dead mother wanting revenge for her child or a dead serial killer at least once every 6 months, then you can't call yourself a member of the Magic Trio."

Belarus smiled at the memory. Ever since she came to live in England's house, she never saw a single ghost. Now she knew why- England had sent them all into the afterlife, willingly or not. She munched her cereal a bit quicker, wanting to go outside and explore the forest.

"Belarus! There's another World Meeting today," England said, striding in. He was already dressed to go out. "We leave at ten, OK?"

"Got it," the girl sighed, a little disappointed. England smiled at her on her way out. He was so happy that she was here (not that he would ever tell anyone). The house felt alive again, like it was when America had stayed with him, before...

Before...

England sighed unhappily. He focussed instead on cleaning away Belarus's breakfast, and ticking off _Kill demons_ from his list. He had gone on his own after yelling at Romania in the hospital. That just left tutoring, hiding everything from the others and Mission Z.

Mission Z, as the Magic Trio had called it, was a standard magical mission where England would knock out America and then Canada to cast protection spells over them. They always did it before facing a formidable enemy. The other two had finished theirs earlier. America and Canada were much harder to do because they were smart and attentive. It had been a lot easier when America and Canada were colonies, but now they were independent (legally. To him they were still the little colonies he raised) it was a whole lot harder. England always got the other's help with America and Canada. He groaned, realizing he needed to get around to it soon, otherwise once the war really got into motion, he would spend his days worrying. Right now it was that little period of time where everything was building up, waiting to explode.

"England?" Belarus brought him back to reality. He smiled at her, tucking the list away and making a mental note to talk to Jack later.

"Great, you're ready. If we have time afterwards, we can go to the forest, if you want?" he asked her. It was time for her to get acquainted with all his- no, their allies. And hopefully seal the deal with a few more of them. She brightened immediately.

"Yes, please!" she practically yelled, and England laughed, together they went out, making their way on the path. Belarus ran ahead, laughing, knowing she would never get tired of the wonders of this world. How had she lived under Russia's shadow so long? What did stand to gain from marrying him anyway? He was a former superpower and she was a poor country on his borders. Well, getting richer anyway, with England's help. She was so wrapped up in her thoughts, she didn't notice the ghost until it was too late. She bounced off him, shaking her head to try and clear it.

"Well, lookie here boys! We have a young maiden travelling all alone!" came a jeering voice. She really didn't like the way he was talking, or the mocking laughter. But she kept her composure, standing up and glaring at him.

"I'll have you know, my big brother is travelling with me!" she snapped in her most authoritative voice.

The people facing her were clearly highway men- the kind that stole from the rich and killed anyone who defied them. Belarus, being able to see and feel ghosts, was vulnerable to their attacks, but they didn't know that. The front one cackled at her, baring his ugly yellow teeth. "Where is he now, missy?"

"He's hanging back because he knows I can kick your butts back to your little huts in the woods," sneered Belarus, although she was screaming inside. Where is England?! she panicked. She had her knife on her, but she could only take on three enemies at one time, and there had to be about 6 of them. However some were laughing at their leader, because Belarus had one upped him.

"You've got some tongue little missy!" roared the man. "How about we cut it out for you?" Quick as lightning, two of the guys pinned her arms behind her back, and a third grabbed her hair, pulling her head back. She struggled as the man forcibly opened her mouth, but bit down hard on one of fingers. "You little-!" He grabbed her mouth roughly. "I am going to make you-"

"What is going on here?" Belarus nearly cried in relief. She would recognise England's voice anywhere. She heard the swish of a sword being drawn. "Unhand my sister, freaks."

The leader cackled. "Oh hoh hoh! So this is the little girl's big brother! And who might you be?" the man said, striding forwards. She couldn't see what happened next, but she heard a scream and the slicing of flesh. The men's grip on her loosened, and she used the chance to rip herself free, barge between them and run next to England. She nearly stopped in her tracks.

England was in his pirate uniform and he was every inch the ruthless pirate. His eyes glowed a fierce emerald green, which lit a spark in her heart of something she'd never felt before, his posture was perfect and his sword was currently pointed at the ghost highway man in front of him. He kicked the man over, pressing his sword into his throat. "I am Captain Arthur Kirkland, her Majesty's sailor and knight of England. How dare you lay a finger on my sister, scum!" he snarled. Belarus grinned inwardly when England muttered out of the corner of his mouth, "Are you OK?"

"Yes, I'm good," she muttered back. The highway man saw the chance to lunge at England during his momentary lapse in concentration.

"NOW NATALYA! ATTACK!" he screamed, clashing swords with the leader.

Belarus wasted no time in taking down the first man while the other's brains were still catching up. She brought out her knife from inside her sock sheath, slashing him across the face, making him scream. The actual wounds would not kill them, nor would stabbing them in the heart, but it would stun them long enough to perform an exorcism. She hadn't gone so long dealing with ghosts without knowing how to perform a quick exorcism, after all. She snapped around, hitting her next attacker on the nose with the handle of her knife, before turning it on him and driving it into his side, then shoving him into the third man. By now England was dealing with the fourth man, running him through with his blade. His pirate costume disappeared, replaced with his uniform. Belarus watched, the adrenaline rush over. They were all stunned. England's smile, however, quickly turned to one of horror.

"Behi-"

Somebody hit her on the back of her head, making her fall, smashing her jaw on the hard gravel path. She felt a metallic taste in her mouth, blood! Her attacker pressed her into the ground with his foot. She saw England's feet coming towards her, but she could hear the zing of a blade falling, she was dead-

"HEY!" came another voice, and suddenly the weight was lifted off her back. She tried to turn around, but England had reached her and was holding her tight.

"Don't look, don't look!" he said frantically, just as unearthly hiss reached her ears, and a scream. She squeezed her eyes shut, feeling England's groan rather than hearing it. The man had stopped screaming now, and she could hear slurping noises. "That's disgusting..."

"Hey, I always pounce on the chance for a good meal... Literally." She knew that voice! But it couldn't be... Her eyes flew open, and she pushed England away, twisting around to face her saviour. It was who she suspected:

Romania. He had silver blood dripping down his chin, and he was grinning. The man behind him twitched every now and then, completely drained of blood. His pupils were dilated, and his nails were sharper as well. He did, in fact, look pretty scary. England moved in front of her, holding out a handkerchief. "... At least wipe your face, you bloody git."

Romania took it, eyes snapping to Belarus, who was half hidden behind England. In a second, he was shoved England out of the way, causing him to slam into a nearby tree with his strength, and was looking down at Belarus in such a way it made her tremble. "Ooooh, hello there..." he purred, laying a hand on her upper arm. All of a sudden, he gripped it tight, making her whimper in pain. "I can smell your blood a mile away, and boy, it is very potent..."

CRACK. England had shot a magic spell straight at Romania's head, and it met it's target, causing the vampire to shriek and fall. "Remember yourself, you bloody twit!" shouted England, Belarus running to his side. His wand (the one with the star on the end) was out, and pointing directly at the vampire. Romania groaned, blinking a few times until his eyes were back to normal.

"Hey... What...?" he mumbled. England lowered his wand and went to help his friend up, leaving Belarus frozen in her spot. She watched the two friends. Romania saw the bloodstains on his shirt and face, and gasped. "Oh my god! Did I-"

"No, just a ghost highway man," England interrupted. "You almost got Belarus though. You need to control your vampire tendencies." As if on cue, the highway men began to groan and stir, coming around. "We should deal with them first..."

* * *

A quick exorcism later, England was walking in between Belarus and Romania, who kept shooting her terrified looks, like he was the one who just attacked. She looked in his direction and he was off, leaving dust in the air and stones defying gravity as he used his vampire speed.

"Please don't kill meeeeeeeeeeeeeee," he shouted, each word getting fainter as he ran further away. Belarus stared after him incredulously.

"He was the one who attacked me, and he's begging for mercy?" she shrieked, hands trying to beat the dust out of her dark green knee length dress, which was lacy at the top. England sighed.

"Listen, Romania wasn't himself back there," England explained. "It's why we control how much human blood he has; it turns him kind of... Feral."

"What, so he can't ever drink human blood, just animals? It _is_ like Twilight..."

England laughed, "No! He can have up to a certain amount. Usually he drinks from allocated cups with the 'correct' amount in it, but..." he finished with a frown. "As you can see that wasn't the case..."

"Oh, I see."

"He's good at heart, I swear, Belarus," England replied, steering her into the train station. "Just a little..." he stopped, not knowing how to finish his sentence, "... Misguided in his goodness, I suppose." Belarus silently agreed with that. Although she had met a whole new side to Romania and her image of him would be altered, she still saw him as the 'Italy' of the trio. And maybe one day it'd be a quartet.

"Eng-Arthur!" yelled a voice.

"Jack! Just the man I want to see!" England exclaimed. Jack reached them, urgency clear on his face.

"There's been an... incident," he said in a low voice. "You have to come quick. It's Tinkerbell."

"What?" Belarus cut in. "What do you mean? What happened?" Tinkerbell was her friend, the only other female she'd met so far in the war. Anger bubbled up inside her. "Did someone hurt her?"

"It's her wings," Jack told them, trying to pull England along. "You have to come quick, she's bleeding out- If you don't fix her, then she'll never fly again!" England ran with Jack, Belarus barely managing to keep up. "Quick, take my hand!" he shouted, and England grabbed his hand, before reaching out for Belarus's.

The cold wind hit her face, and she gasped, watching the station shrink below her. "Jack, you can fly?!"

"Yeah! I'm Jack Frost!" It all made sense now. The trips around the world, the freak storms in Poland... For a second, she wondered how Poland dealt with that. She could imagine him hiding in his bedroom with his hair curlers, crying his eyes out while Estonia tried to comfort him. And she knew how he'd got out without her noticing!

She glanced down at the scene below her, and despite the terrible situation, she felt her spirits lift. Golden farms glowed up at her, surrounded by green fields occupied with sheep, horses and cows. She could see a tractor puffing away every now and then, and then a dark green forest would appear, it's top branches swaying as if it was waving a hello. She waved back.

They dipped and Belarus felt her stomach churn, like going down a roller-coaster (she didn't know that though- she had never been on a roller-coaster in her life). England let go of her hand and she was falling. She yelled out, closing her eyes and preparing for a painful landing-

FWUMP. She hit some guy, who staggered slightly under the speed of her fall. She looked up, immediately noticing the guy's pointed ears. "Oh... Sorry!" she squeaked, jumping out of his arms. To her surprise, he bowed.

"Not to worry, miss Belarus. I saw you coming," he smiled at the shock on her face. "Yes, everyone in the magical world knows who you are now. You are associated with England after all."

"Talking of England, where is he?"

"He went inside the house to treat miss Tinkerbell. But allow me to introduce myself. I am Amonor Syrin, the prince of the western Elven Kingdom," he said, bowing again. Belarus curtsied.

"I'm Belarus, a nation... But you already knew that." Amonor laughed.

"Yes I did, but it's nice to make your acquaintance. Though I must ask... Do you know anything about this war? My father has been closed off about it." They began making their way in, where England was slowly healing Tinkerbell's wings. Minty was there too, holding one of Tinkerbell's hands, more for his benefit than hers.

"Well, from what I've experienced," Belarus said slowly, "I think we're fighting someone on the other side..."

 _"Look. The energy signals are clearly there, they're coming back!"_

 _ **"Old enemies back for revenge..."**_

 _"Starlight?" she mused. "Where on earth would they get starlight? The stars are in the sky."_

 _"So are they," muttered Norway._

 ** _She slammed her knife through the red dot, unable to hear the pained yell on the other side, but she felt a satisfaction._**

She didn't notice Amonor's fading smile. "What do you mean? The other side?"

"Like... I don't know how to explain it. Like another presence... of _us."_ The whole room fell silent. "It's just a feeling though... I feel repelled by whoever it is- Er, why are you staring at me?" she said, a little unnerved.

"We're fighting them?" Amonor hissed, glaring at England. "How long were you planning to keep this silent?"

"If your father didn't tell you Amonor, then he did so for good reason," England replied calmly. He jumped when Amonor slammed his fist down on the bedside table. "What the bloody hell do you think-"

"I REFUSE TO LET MY PEOPLE PARTICIPATE IN THIS WAR!" he shouted. Belarus quickly slid over to Tinkerbell.

"Hey are you OK?" she whispered. Tinkerbell nodded, and the two turned to the growing argument.

"There is no reason why-"

"Your father agreed to it!"

"Guys-" Minty started. "England-"

"This is still innocent people we're sending to their deaths!"

"And think of how many more will be killed if they get through!"

"England you should-" Minty tried again.

"My people can easily hide!"

"What about the people of England? Remember, if this country falls so will you!"

"ENGLAND! AMONOR!" yelled Minty with surprising ferocity. The day had barely even begun (it was midday by then) and already it was full of new discoveries. "England, you should look at this. It was taped to Tinkerbell's leg. I didn't notice it until now." With growing foreboding, England took the piece of paper. He read it out.

 _"Hiya babe, heard you are gathering a little army against us. This one was just a warning. If you don't submit to me, I will-"_ he broke off, dropping the paper and running out.

"W-what does it say? Amonor?" Belarus asked in a small voice. Amonor looked down at the paper, then back up at her.

 _"If you don't submit to me, I will come after your precious little colonies next, doll face. Then your beloved little sister. Lots of love, Allen xx."_


	12. Chapter 12

Belarus found England sitting outside, chin resting on his knees as he curled up on the grass. He was staring out at the quiet fields, where the only sounds were the wind and the quiet tweets of the birds. She sat down next to him, looking out over the field as well, unsure what to say. Luckily, she didn't have to say anything.

"It's beautiful, isn't it? This is what makes England, England. The government has decided to stop building more cities so we can preserve our countryside," he said, gazing out at the field, where the green grass was almost the same colour as his eyes. "But if they come back..." He fell into silence again, squeezing his eyes shut. It was only when a tear fell out of his eyes did Belarus realise he was crying. She hadn't even heard his shaky sobs, and she wondered how long it took to perfect that trick... Or how many times he'd cried.

"Arthur... Big brother..." she said, scooting closer, using England's human name. "I'm sorry... For talking back there. I shouldn't have said anything."

"You didn't know Natalya," and Belarus was surprised at how steady his voice seemed, despite the tears that were escaping his eyes. "You didn't know. It's OK." He stared back out into the field, hugging himself even tighter. "I suppose you should know the truth, about everything. It's not fair of me to keep this information from you." Belarus remained silent, gazing intently at her brother. He took a deep breath, and began talking again.

"It all started a few years ago, when I decided to test out a spell. As per usual, America interrupted me and dragged me off to another bloody party. But this spell.. had much more dire side effects."

 _"HAHAHAH! The hero will rescue you from your basement!" shouted America, throwing England over his shoulder and carrying him out._

 _"WANKER! Put me down!" England screamed, and he was dumped on the ground._

 _"OK! OK! No need to go all senior on me!" laughed America. He ran off, shouting over his shoulder, "Come to my party then!"_

 _England got up, grumbling. He made his way back into the basement, freezing when he saw people. "Who are you?!" he yelled. The red haired one turned, grinning. "A-America? What are you doing here git!" It was more of an insult than a question._

 _The redhead swung his baseball bat onto his shoulder and stalked forward, one hand in his pocket. He whistled. "Wow! Oliver looks like the other end of a horse, but you don't look half bad, babe," he grinned. England slapped him across the face._

 _"Don't make obscene comments like that! I'm your former guardian, idiot!" England screamed, glaring America straight in the eye. America looked shocked for a second, but the grin returned- only much more sadistic._

 _England took a step back._

 _"I like your attitude," he growled, and that's when England noticed the nails sticking out of the bat. Suddenly, he grabbed the front of England's jumper, pulling him close. "Always makes 'em much more fun to break, after all," and he slammed England into the wall._

 _BANG. England's palms were turned outwards, pointing directly at America, eyes narrowed. "Anybody else?" Some of them looked impressed._

 _"I applaud your bravery, England," one said, bowing. He wore a bloodstained scarf, and made sure to trample over the groaning America as he approached. He stopped at England's glare. "I am Viktor, or Russia."_

 _"What are you doing here? What do you want?" England snapped, already feeling magic tingling at his fingertips._

 _"Oh, that's an easy question. We've come to kill you," Viktor said, and he lunged at England, only to be done in by another blast._

 _"We want to take over your world, heheh, because there's so much to destroy," growled Luciano, a bored Lutz behind him. "We're-"_

 _"Italy and Germany, I know," England interrupted. "That one-" he nodded at Kuro, "-Is Japan and the angry one China. I'm guessing the ugliest will be France then..." he said, looking at Francois, who scowled and continued smoking._

 _"Hey! You forgot meeeee!" squealed a voice. A man with strawberry blonde hair, wearing pink and baby blue clothing with a bow tie and baby blue eyes came out of the darkness. He pouted. "How could you forget me! I'm you!"_

 _"No way," England groaned. "Why am I the freak?"_

 _"I did say... You look like a circus misfit.." America groaned. "But... I would date you over Oliver any day, babe," he smirked murderously. "Like I said, you are pretty fucking hot compared to these freaks." He gestured to the people behind him._

 _"No swearing, Ally!" shrieked Oliver._

 _"Ally's a girl's name, old man! I am a man, fucking idiot!"_

 _"Whatever let's take him," grunted Francois, and in a sudden movement they all attacked._

"What happened?" Belarus asked. "Did you win?"

England chuckled. "I'm glad you see me as that powerful, Natalya. But they knocked me out and tied me up. They made it halfway to America's party before the others (Norway and Romania) caught on and stopped them. The other countries don't even know their counterparts exist."

"Oh," Belarus said in a small voice. She was very scared all of a sudden, because if these countries, their counterparts were as tough as England was describing them, then they stood no chance without an army at least.

"If they come back, they'll destroy everything... And I'm afraid of what Allen- the second America- might do to you..." England whispered. "What they might do to everybody I care about..."

For the first time since she was rescued, Belarus saw a vulnerable side to England. She saw how much he cared about the others, and his love for everything. Before she knew it, she had thrown herself at him, wrapping her arms around the man. England froze for a moment, then hugged her back, sobs shaking his body.

"I won't let them get us," Belarus said fiercely, with more passion than she had ever loved Russia. "I won't. Not ever!"

She felt as though her heart was bursting with so many emotions. She felt so angry and worried and upset, but so joyful and determined to win this war. She felt her own hot tears roll down her face, but she hugged England tighter. When she was in his arms, she always felt like nothing could get to her, nothing could hurt her. The two cried silently with each other, no words exchanged, just silent comfort. Comfort in their surroundings, and comfort in each other.

* * *

"It is unusual for Angleterre to be so late for a meeting! Even with all the traffic he said he has got into!" France was saying. Russia scowled, turning away from the conversation. He didn't really care about the English nation, it was Belarus- his sister, no matter what she said- he was worried about. Well, not worried, more like pissed off at her because she had been ignoring him. But a small part of him was worried.

Everyone looked up as the door slowly opened, and Belarus and England walked in. They were smiling, which was strange, but what was even more weird was the fact they were holding hands. Belarus's left hand was loosely clutched in England's right, her sleeve touching his. What's more, they looked like they had been crying. Belarus tried to wipe her nose on her sleeve, but England stopped her, handing her a tissue. She smiled, taking it.

"Angleterre...?" France asked questioningly. "Are you all right...?"

Without taking his eyes off Belarus, England nodded. Belarus sniffled, still clutching England's hand. "I am now, France," he murmured.

Russia's anger was momentarily forgotten when he saw the state Belarus was in. He went forward. "Little sister, are you ok? What did he do to you?" Russia growled fiercely. Belarus stepped in front of England, arms perpendicular to her body.

"I am not your little sister anymore! Don't touch my big brother, Russia!" She said, still fiery. England smiled, patting her head. She scowled playfully, turning to him. "And I'm not a dog either!"

England laughed, embracing her. Russia, unnoticed by them, went back to his seat, vowing to get to the bottom of their relationship-and to tear it apart.

* * *

 _Allen swung his bat lazily, rocking on the head chair of their conference room. His eye was still out, and word had got around that the 1p Belarus had taken it out. He growled slightly._

 _"Oh, poor Allen!" Cooed Oliver, placing a pink cupcake in front of the man. It had a cute little bandage icing on it, with chocolate sprinkles. Allen knocked it off the table, grinning as it hit the ground with a SPLAT. Oliver shrieked, putting his hands on his hips. "I made that especially for you, Allen!" He placed another, identical cupcake in front of the man._

 _This time, Allen picked it up- and threw it straight into Oliver's face. Oliver squealed in shock, wiping the cupcake remnants off of his face with a rose coloured tissue. Matt chuckled, but stopped when Oliver glared at him. Then suddenly he burst into tears. "Oh, how did I raise such a mean cupcake baby? You're more like a scone baby!" He sobbed._

 _Viktor roared with laughter when Oliver called Allen a 'mean cupcake baby.' Allen growled angrily, swinging his bat at Oliver, who dodged it and carried on crying. He collapsed into a chair next to Matt who was sniggering behind his hand. "Shut the fuck up Matt- he calls you a yummy jammy!" He yelled at his twin, who immediately stopped laughing and flipped the finger at him._

 _At that point, however, Oliver had looked up and saw Matt's rude gesture. "Matt! Don't do such things with your fingers!" He scolded._

 _Matt hugged Oliver, apologising. Allen simply rolled his eyes. "Mummy's boy," he muttered, simultaneously blocking an attack from Zao and sending him flying into Luciano. "Fucker! Why are you attacking me?!"_

 _"I felt like it," growled Zao. Luciano shoved Zao off his lap, whipping his pocket knife out. Lutz stopped him by picking him up by the waist. He screeched, "Put me down, sfarzoso!" And brandished his knife, trying to get him across the face. Lutz sighed, holding the angry Italian at arms length as he thrashed._

 _"EVERYBODY SHUT UUUUUUP!" Roared Francois, slamming his fist on the table. He glared at the frozen countries. "How the hell am I meant to enjoy my cigarette when you're being loud?" He sat back down, sticking his cig back in his mouth. That was his input for the meeting, he would be silent for the rest of the day._

 _"Now that you've all stopped fucking about," Allen said. "We need to do something about England and that little bitch, Belarus."_

 _"No you just want the brat dead," Kuro cackled, jumping in his seat. Lutz slammed his hand into the back of the hyper nation's head, causing him to face plant into the table. He sighed wearily, still holding Luciano._

 _"Sfarzoso! Put me down!"_

 _"We need to take out England," continued Allen. He smiled, showing his sharp canines. "After all... Cut off the head and the body dies."_

 _"More like you wanna fuck with 1p England's mind," Matt muttered underneath his breath. Allen scowled._

 _"Whatever. This is what we're gonna do..."_


	13. Chapter 13

For the last month or so, when Belarus joined England, she was on edge. Everything was quiet, too quiet for her. She was constantly checking over her shoulder for enemies, carrying her knife around, and keeping an eye out for anything and everything. Often, she wished that their counterparts would just attack already, so she should feel less tense.

She took all that back now, as she desperately fought against the person who had broken into her room, and was lying in wait for her. She had no idea he was there. And for once, she had let her guard down, deciding to come home and relax for a while. Surely, she didn't need to be on edge all the time? How she regretted her decision to come home. She wished she was going with England to the world meeting again.

She didn't recognize the country she was fighting. But, that was to be expected as everything was opposite in their world. Whoever they were, they were very good at what they did, and they had already weakened her by punching her in the stomach. She heard one of her ribs crack, and she could feel it moving as she dodged her attacker. Despite the fact she was a country who fought a lot, especially over Russia (but that was in the old times), she could already feel herself wearing down, and she realized, that she hadn't been keeping up with her training at all. She had been neglecting it in favour of spending time with England and the Magic Trio. Well now, that failure was going to be the death of her, unless she could escape.

With that thought in mind, she grabbed the lamp and hit her attacker over the head with it. He clearly wasn't expecting it, because he immediately fell to the ground, unconscious. She felt a little guilty, because it was a pretty nice lamp. However, she stepped over his body and ran out the front door. She looked around wildly, trying to find a place to go where she would be able to contact England safely, or perhaps someone else, without being found by her attacker, or any waiting accomplices. She didn't put it past them to play dirty, as they were criminals after all. She looked towards the forest, thinking. Could she go in there? It had proved dangerous before, but now it could be her saving grace. She ran towards it without hesitation.

Once inside, she realized she'd never been off the path. England had always told her never stray off the path. When she had asked why, he had told her that there were some things in the forest that were best left alone, and best undiscovered. She had trusted him, well, she still did trust him, but now was the time for action, not thoughts. It was either: stay on the path and eventually be found by her attacker, or, get off it and hopefully find a place to hide. Surely, she thought, there can't all be bad things in the forest? She went deeper and deeper into the forest, staying on the path, trying to find a suitable point where she'd be able to get off.

The truth was, for all her bravery in the heat of the moment and in battle, she was a little bit scared. Sure, she acted scary, but she was still a teenage girl, alone in the forest where her guardian had advised her not to go off the path. And then there was the fact that she was caught in the middle of a war, an underground, secret war, that no one else knew about. Suddenly, she heard rustling behind her, and realised that her attacker must be awake and following her. So it was now or never. She took a deep breath, and, mentally saying sorry to England, and anyone else she was disobeying, she stepped off the path, and ran deep into the woods.

"Dammit!" Yelled 2P Lithuania, throwing his gun down. He scowled at the disappearing form of the girl, knowing that he'd never be able to catch up with her. He was skilled, but not that skilled. He decided instead to go back, and report to 2p Russia and the others. He had tried, so there was nothing else he could do. And besides, the girl was as good as dead inside the forest. He smirked. She clearly had no idea what lay inside the deep depths of the magical England's forest. Nor did she have the magic tolerance to fight against whatever would get her inside there. He turned abruptly on his heel, and began walking back, not in a hurry. He liked this world, and everything it had to offer. It would be a pleasure to destroy.

* * *

England was alone in this world meeting. Ever since Belarus had become his little sister, he had fallen out with Russia, and the Baltic nations. He knew they were only doing it to keep on Russia's good side, but it still hurt to see them avoid his eye, when the other day they had been chatting like good friends. He sighed, ignoring Russia's scary glare, and taking more notes on the speech Italy was making. Although there wasn't much to be said about the speech, as it was mainly about how pasta could save the world, how it was a good source of carbohydrates, and how pasta sauce was in short supply in Italy. Italy was afraid there was going to be a riot, and was appealing to the other countries to give him pasta sauce. Oh well, he thought, at least it was less stupid in America's speech. He shook his head fondly at the thought of America. He didn't know how he raised the boy so silly. But it was nice to see him so carefree.

He stopped, feeling indescribable panic rise in his chest. He put his pen down and frowned. France noticed and looked over at him. "What's wrong, Angleterre?" The French nation asked. England shook his head confusedly, looking around to find Norway and Romania staring at him too.

"Can you feel it?" He mouthed at them. The two nodded, and Romania jerked his head towards the door, a clear sign that they should leave and talk. England excused himself, trying to get his arm back from America, who was unusually clingy to him. France, however saved the day by telling America he would buy him a hamburger if he let go of England's arm. England shot him a grateful look, the French frog could be useful sometimes. Then, he ran out to find Norway and Romania waiting. "What do you think is wrong, I can feel it in the forest."

Romania looked thoughtful for a moment. Norway spoke. "I don't know, I don't think it's the trolls all the fairies. Nor do I think its the elves, I had a message from Amonor the other day. He says he'll partake in the war. So it can't be that."

"Where is Belarus?" Romania asked England. The moment Romania said her name, England felt his indescribable panic shoot up like a measuring scale. His eyes widened, and he clutched his fast beating heart.

"Oh god," he panicked. "I can feel it. It's her, she's inside the forest!" Norway's usually calm and serious face immediately morphed into an expression of utter horror. Romania covered his eyes with his hands, trying not to think about the forest, and instead focusing on Belarus. "My sister is in the forest! What are we going to do?"

A deep dark laugh resonated around the place they were standing. Romania scowled angrily and Norway copied him. England looked furious. "I bet you're all worked up about the little princess being lost in the forest. Well, I can tell you that our forces attacked her. And now she's gone into the scawy forest!" 2p America's voice grew mocking, and he laughed some more. England drew out his wand and shot it at the ceiling, not really sure where he should shoot to shut the American up.

"YOU SHUT UP!" Roared England. "Belarus is perfectly capable to fight whatever is in that forest until we come and get her!" Romania nodded, drawing out his wand and his fangs and Norway also drew out a sword. "Why don't you come out and fight us?"

"If you really want us to, babe," growled a voice right next to his ear. England jumped, whirling around and facing 2p America. Norway stood on his left side, while Romania was on his right. Allen smirked at the three as the rest of his allies appeared out of the dark, surrounding them. Norway began to look uncertain.

"England..." he whispered, "I don't think we'll be able to take them out..."

"We'll take as many as we can with us then," England snarled back. He looked Norway in the eye. "Our loved ones are in there." Norway's mouth set and he nodded, gripping his sword tighter. He seemed to have forgotten they were standing right outside the meeting room. "Wivedinec," he murmured, covering the door with a silencing spell. That would stop America and the rest rushing out. He focussed on 2p America.

It was time to take them out.

 **Sorry for the filler-ish chapter but I'm experiencing some writer's block. I'll still post next week, hopefully it will be more action, and that poll still needs more votes (it's leaning towards a FRUK pairing...)**


	14. Chapter 14

2p America faced England, smirking as he saw the growing panic on Norway's face. England muttered something under his breath, and the panic vanished, replaced with determination. Romania snarled, lashing out at 2p Russia, who had come a bit too close for his liking. He hissed as Norway pulled him back.

England's eyes narrowed as he pressed himself into his friends. Norway had enclosed Romania in between them, as he was the youngest, and they didn't want him to get hurt. Despite his calm demeanour, he secretly wished Belarus was here, because she would be a great ally to have in this situation. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tinkerbell appear with flying mint bunny. Norway's troll also made an usually quiet appearance. They were three people the 2p's could not see.

"Hey! If you get your fairy friends, I do too!" protested Oliver. Allen glared at him.

"What the fuck, old man? There aren't any fairies here," he said. 2p Canada rolled his eyes, he hadn't even bothered to pick up his weapon yet. Neither had Francois, he was idly smoking between Kuro and Lutz.

"Yes there are," Oliver said matter-of-factly. "They're right there!" He pointed to what Allen saw as a blank space. Romania held back a snigger as Tinkerbell began making faces at him. Oliver tutted at her, glaring.

"Can't see us, fucktard!" she taunted, flying up to him and kicking him in the nose. Allen yelled angrily, swiping his bat in front of his face. It missed Tinkerbell by a mile, and she rolled around in the air (out of reach of course) laughing. Flying mint bunny was laughing too, and England couldn't help the small smile that appeared on his face.

Allen glared at the smiling England. "What are you smiling at?"

"...Nothing."

"Heee heee hee," Romania giggled from between his friends. The laughter was infectious, and England's shoulders began to shake. Norway's sword wobbled slightly as he tried to keep a straight expression. Romania by this time was rolling around on the floor laughing, as Tinkerbell blast a spell at Allen, turning his hair hot pink. The other 2p countries stared, mouths open.

"What the fuck are you-" Oliver held up a mirror in front of Allen, clipping him around the ear for swearing. He barely noticed though. "FUCKING-WHAT THE FUCK- BASTARD! WHAT DID- DICKHEAD STOP LAUGHING!" roared Allen at Matt, who was lying next to a laughing Romania, also laughing.

"You 1p's are all right," he told Romania, then started laughing again. Romania whistled.

A rumble shook the ground. The 2p's looked around, trying to find out where it was coming from. England looked at Norway for about half a second, then they both dived to the ground, Tinkerbell pulling flying mint bunny back. Norway's troll did not move, not even flinching when the the building was suddenly shattered by a breath of fire and torn apart by claws. An unearthly roar sounded as a great green dragon appeared, looking for it's master. Romania stood up, making a few clicks and hisses with his mouth.

"Come on guys, while they're stunned," yelled Romania. He pulled up England and Norway and the three ran towards the waiting dragon. Norway's troll was already up, and he grabbed Norway by the collar, dumping him in front of him. Tinkerbell was safely nestled in England's front pocket, while flying mint bunny sat atop his head. England scrambled up, helped by Romania, and they flew away. Briefly, England thought about the conference, and all the people there, but America's protection spell would take care of that...

Quickly, Norway turned and muttered a quick spell, making all the bricks fly back into place and blocking the angry 2p's from sight. He turned back and gave a rare smile to his friends. "Lucky it was the back of the building... No memory loss spells needed here." England 'hmmed', not really listening. Now that the 2p's were out of the way, he could focus on finding Belarus. He squeezed his eyes shut and sent a quick prayer in her direction.

 _We're coming._

Back at the conference room, America grabbed the table amidst the screams and shocked gasps of the other nations. Immediately he took charge. "GET UNDER THE TABLE!" he cried, grabbing the person nearest to him and pulling them under the table. He saw the other nations appear and did a quick mental count as heads appeared. France, who he had pulled down, was trying to get back up again.

"Angleterre is out there!" he shouted, struggling to get out of America's grasp. America almost let him go, but he pushed down his swirling feelings and simply increased his grip on the other. He hoped and prayed that England was okay, because he couldn't be his hero right now. He let go once the earthquake was over, and France shot to the door- only to stagger back as the door was flung across the room. As quick as a flash, Italy tackled the recovering German nation to the ground.

"ITAL-"

CRASH! It hit the wall behind Germany, where he had been standing seconds before. Italy smiled at Germany. "You saved my life..." Germany whispered.

"That was our promise, wasn't it? You save me when I get caught, and I'll come and save you when you need it," he said, eyes filling with tears. "I nearly lost you..."

"Nein... Never," mumbled Germany, sitting up and hugging the crying Italy. "Not ever..."

"How _touching."_

America's eyes widened as he stared at himself.

* * *

Belarus bit down hard on the knife in her mouth, climbing the tree higher and higher. The screeches of the dead could be heard below her, and they were getting nearer. Her beautiful dress was in rags, her hair was messy and her face was flushed. The forest didn't seem like such a nice place now. But England could have told her there were _fucking zombies_ infesting the place! She felt a scratch on her leg, and she lashed out wildly, pleased to hear a thud as another body hit the forest floor. She swung herself upwards, grabbing onto another branch.

To her absolute horror, she felt the twig begin to snap, and she scrabbled desperately for a foothold. It began to bend backwards...

She had no choice left. She wrapped her legs around the trunk of the tree, as far as she could manage, and let go of the twig. She clawed her way up, feeling blood rise up at her hands. "Shit!" she cursed, as the blood steadily dribbled downwards to the blood-lusting zombies. She saw the closest one pause, licking at the blood on the bark, and she realised she could use this to her advantage. She took her knife from her mouth, stabbing it into the tree, while the other tore off pieces of bark to make a crude hole for her other hand to go in. She pulled herself up, balancing her feet on an unstable looking branch (it was thinning out- she was reaching the top of the tree), before stepping over to another, higher one, hopping from branch to branch while the zombies licked away at her blood.

Once reaching the top, she peered out over the top, trying to see a way out. She reached over, seeing the top of the train station. Further and further she reached until...

* * *

"What the hell?" America yelped, and the other him turned to look at him.

"Oh, so you're me," he leered at his shocked counterpart.

"What have you done to Angleterre?" France demanded to know. Francois's cigarette dropped to the floor as his mouth dropped open. Completely unafraid, 1p France stalked up to 2p America and grabbed the front of his shirt. "Tell me what you have done to mon Angleterre!"

2p America punched France in the face, and 1p America caught him. "I haven't done anything to your fucking Angleterre," growled Allen. America noticed his hair was bright pink at this particular moment, and his bandaged eye. "Maybe it's a question of what he's done to MY FUCKING HAIR!"

"It's a pretty shade of pink," Poland commented, "England really has taste." Half the nations (1 and 2ps) rolled their eyes at this. Suddenly, Allen grabbed America, bringing him in close. America held back a whimper, reminding himself to be the hero as he glared straight into the dark depths of Allen's eyes.

"So this retard is me," he said to the other 2p's. "What a fucking wimp." The other 2p's laughed loudly.

"You're an asshole," America snapped at him. Allen smirked. He threw America back into the wall, causing dust to rise. Stars exploded in his eyes, and while he was stunned, Allen lifted his bat and brought it down straight onto America's head.

CLANG! Everybody froze as Russia's pipe met met Allen's bat. He kicked the 2p in the stomach, sending him staggering back a couple of steps. America's jaw dropped as his enemy defended him. Russia scowled at Allen and the 2p's. "Nobody can hurt idiot America... Except me." A dark aura began to surround him. Surprisingly, it was Italy who joined him next.

"Y-you tried to hurt-a G-Germany!" he squeaked, nearly hiding behind Russia. "I w-won't let-a that happen!" Luciano smirked, but he unconsciously tightened his grip on Lutz's jacket. Kuro noticed and giggled.

"W-wait! I'm sure we can sort this out by talking to each other," America yelled, before anyone else could make a declaration. He was glad his heroine- er, England was safe, but he still had everyone else to think about- especially the more vulnerable nations, like Sealand and Wy and Seborga... "Can't we come to an agreement?" he said. He stepped in front of Allen, holding out his hands in a gesture of peace. "We don't want any trouble."

"Too, bad, motherfucker, because I DO!" Allen bellowed, and America yelled, bringing his arms up and closing his eyes so he wouldn't have to see the bat hit him. He never heard the sickening crunch of bat-on-bone though, because everyone was gasping. He risked a peek, and dropped his arms.

He was in a golden bubble. Allen tried to punch America, but it just hit the bubble and bounded off harmlessly. Immediately, other nations began going into bubbles- the Nordics (Sweden and Finland shared a bubble), Sealand, Wy, Seborga, Canada...

"Oh! Isn't he a smart one," Oliver chuckled, and America stared. That guy looked so much like England, but it was just wrong. "The troublesome magic trio have cast protection spells on the nations..."

"You know we're nations," China stated. He narrowed his eyes at them, drifting in front of Japan and blocking him from sight (even though Japan was in a bubble too). China and most of the other nations (besides the ones closest to the magic trio) were not in bubbles, as the trio hadn't got round to doing them yet. Japan's counterpart ran forwards, uttering a battle cry. Japan yelled out, but China dodged him easily, pulling Japan to the side turning to face his counterpart.

"How dare you, I'm going to kung-fu kick you!" screamed China.

"No, please don't!" the counterpart begged, "Wait-"

China ran forward and with a screech of "HEEEEEEEYAH!" his leg went straight upwards, knocking Kuro's chin to the sky, and making him topple over backwards. China came back down to earth, landing gracefully on one foot. Japan stared.

"How come you never taught me that move?" he asked childishly.

"You left before I could," was the reply, and Japan had the grace to look slightly guilty. Viktor rolled his eyes, picking up Kuro by the back of his shirt and carrying him back to the 2p's.

"I don't care- LET'S FINISH THIS!" Allen screamed, and he threw his bat at Russia, who wasn't in a bubble.

That was when America felt true fear.

What England had been thinking of earlier, of America's protection spell, was correct. He put a little twist in the spell. When America felt true fear, for his or another's life, all the bubbles would vanish-

The nations bubbles burst.

And an impulse of magical energy, America's own magical energy, which England had suppressed when America gained independence for his own safety, would come out from his mind. America cried out as he felt and saw a yellow circle of light expand across the room, shattering the windows and knocking out the 1p nations. He was out before he saw the 2p nations screaming and writhing in pain, before being sucked back to their world, leaving no trace of themselves behind.

* * *

"A-ahhh!" Belarus screamed on impulse. She pitched forward violently, falling out of the tree and landing with a sickening smack on the ground. The zombies didn't notice, still licking the blood off the tree. She tried to move and a pained gasp escaped her. The cracked rib was now definitely cracked, and she looked down to see something white sticking out of her arm. With a jolt, she realized it was her bone. She used her other, thankfully unharmed arm, to get up, cradling her broken arm. Pain like she had never known shot through her, but she bit down on her tongue, trying to creep away from the occupied zombies. She limped in an unknown direction, each movement becoming agony.

She let tears fall from her eyes as she tried to find a place to hide. She crawled in between two large bushes, concealed from sight and let her body shake with fright. She would rather be running away from her attacker than this. She drew her knees into herself, shying away from the scary world around her, and pulled the tattered jumper closer to her body. She breathed it in, smelling a light fragrance mixed with parchment and peppermint. It was a simple green jumper that belonged to England. She could almost pretend England was there with her, comforting her... She had taken it, thinking it would look nice with her dress, but now, breathing it in...

It smelt like _home._

 **Sorry for the late update. I went to visit my aunt in Essex... And I live outside London... So I was knackered when I came back. Still, leave a review or favourite or follow, please.**


	15. Chapter 15

England frowned as he felt his chest warm up. He let go of the dragon's scales, putting one hand inside his shirt and pulling out a simple necklace with three beads on it. One was decorated with the American flag, one with the Canadian flag and the third with the French flag. The flags were glowing, and England breathed a sigh of relief.

America and the others were safe.

Norway looked over. "What's that, England?" he asked.

"It's a magic necklace I made," he explained, "Whenever one of the countries on is in danger, it will go cold. If they are safe, then it will warm up." He showed the glowing beads to Norway and Romania. Romania pouted.

"Hey I want one!" whined Romania. Norway also agreed.

"You didn't think to share this development with us?" Norway said pointedly. "It could be useful in this war."

"Well, with the war happening, I kind of forgot about it," England said feebly. Norway rolled his eyes and Romania didn't even bother.

"This does not deserve my eye-roll!" he declared. He threw his arms out. "And you call me the ditzy-" Romania fell off the dragon, because he had let go of the scales. The dragon's tail came forward, whacking Romania upwards, and he landed straight back onto his seat, in exactly the same position. "-I just can't believe that, you know!" Norway and England exchanged glances at Romania's obliviousness.

Then England glanced back at the necklace. _I should have put one on for Belarus earlier..._ he thought, thinking about the bead that was back home, waiting to be threaded on in his drawer. "Can we go any faster?" he shouted over the wind in his face.

"Can we?" Romania replied, and England felt flying mint bunny grip his hair as their speed increased.

* * *

America woke up, groaning. "W-What happened?" He mumbled. He blinked a couple of times and moved his jaw. He began to slowly move, getting himself in an upright position. He frowned against the sunlight, peering at all the still nations on the floor. Fumbling around, he found his glasses, which had been knocked off his face when he had fainted. He didn't feel bad, just a bit tired. Everything came into focus as he slipped his glasses onto his face, and he took in the scene of destruction.

Knocked out nations lay against the floor, the table or each other; windows had been shattered; the files and notes were scattered everywhere and some nations had cuts or bruises on their faces, presumably from the blast or the attacks. America rubbed his head, feeling dried blood. Thank God he was a superpower, otherwise that blow would have done a lot more than stun him...

He caught sight of Russia, and slowly walked over to him, kneeling beside him and shaking him. "Russia, wake up," America said. He felt enormous gratitude to the other nation, and a little bit of respect. The other nation stirred. "Russia... Did he get you?" He began to inspect the other for injuries while Russia regained conciousness. The white haired nation looked rather sweet, scarf over the bottom half of his face and messed up hair. America smiled.

"Amerika..." Groaned Russia. He sat up also, and America left him to recover to wake up the other nations. America was now aware of the shouts coming from outside, as reporters demanded to know what had happened, and why all the governments of the world were hurrying into the building. As if on cue, presidents, prime ministers, kings and queens had burst in, going to their respective personifications. Barack Obama hurried up to America.

"You all right there, son?" Obama addressed America as 'son' because he was so immature and young looking. He noticed the blood caked onto America's head. "What happened?" he asked, alarmed. "Come on, there's medics outside. Let's go."

America shook him off. "Sorry, dude, but I need to talk to everyone." America clambered up onto the table, despite Michelle's scolding. "Everybody!" He yelled. All the countries and their leaders turned to him. "I know you're probably all wondering what happened to us!" America scratched the back of his head. "Um, I don't really know. But!" He yelled over the grumbles of the others, "I know it has something to do with England!" He pointed at the English, Romanian and the Norwegian prime ministers, who were trying to edge out of the room.

"Care to explain, David?" Barack asked.

"That's classified between us three," Cameron replied, pointing at himself and the other two. The Belarusian prime minister looked around.

"Hey, where's Belarus?" He cried. The Norwegian prime minister, Erna, scowled.

"I'm afraid that none of us are at liberty to reveal anything," she said. "If you want answers, then you'll have to wait until the personifications of our countries get back."

* * *

Belarus whimpered, knife in hand as she backed away from the huge thing looming over her. She didn't know what it was, but it resembled a giant ant, and more importantly, it was closing in on her. She turned and fled, jolting her broken arm. Tears welled up in her eyes again, as she cried for the second time that day. She was no match against these creatures! What had she been thinking? She could only do levitation spells, and small ones at that! The only thing she could do was flee, and she could feel herself getting out of breath already.

She slowed down, reaching out to stroke the jumper in reassurance - except it wasn't there. She looked at her dress, or what was left of it, turning frantically, trying to see if it had got caught. She spotted it a little way back, but before she could retrieve it, the ant-thing had caught up to her. She tried to run again, but it caught her leg, stabbing right through it.

She opened her mouth, but no scream came. Only a sob as more pain shot through her. "Let go!" she pleaded, beginning to struggle weakly.

A gust of wind blew overhead and a roar shuddered through the forest. The ant-thing squeaked and dropped her running away. She hit the ground, not having any strength to move any more. She closed her eyes, ready for whatever was there- whatever had scared her attacker away.

"Natalya!" came a cry. "Nattie!" She lifted her head.

"Big b-brother," she said, nearly crying in relief. She only watched, almost feeling detached, as England ran up to her, carefully turning her over. "I- I.."

"Don't speak," England said, stroking her hair. She was vaguely aware of Norway crouching over her leg, saying something as his hands lit up with a blue light. "Don't speak, baby girl." On another day, she would have scolded him for calling her 'baby girl' but she didn't care. She pressed her face into his jumper, not noticing Romania taking her broken arm.

"ARGH!" she screamed, as he snapped it back into place. She saw blood running down her arm and the pain came back full force. She tried to jerk her arm out of his grip, but he was relentless, not letting her go.

"Romania! It's not the time for that!" England cried, also reaching over to try and stop him. Romania muttered something, his hands caked in her blood, lighting up with a red light. Belarus had already been through so much, she couldn't take any more. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head, her head dropping onto England's lap. By this time, Romania had finished, and was wiping the blood on his trousers. "Natalya? Nattie?!" England said, shaking her. Belarus didn't respond. Norway put his arms underneath England's in a locking motion, dragging him away from Belarus's still figure.

For a crazy second, England was reminded of the time when France had tried to force him to marry him and had dragged him away as such. He laughed wildly. Norway stared at him, then smashed his forehead against the back of England's head, effectively knocking him out as well. He dropped England's weight, sighing as he brushed himself off. He looked up to find everyone who was still concious - his troll, Romania, Tinkerbell and flying mint bunny - staring at him. "What? He was going crazy!"

"No, I never knew you were so tough..." Romania said.

"Well when you live with an idiot like Denmark you tend to grow a thick skin." Norway nodded at his troll, who picked up Belarus and England before disappearing. Romania looked around.

"Hey where'd he go?!"

"Back to England's. But we," he said, before Romania could protest, "Need to get back to the world meeting. No doubt England's protection spell caused a stir. Don't worry, they're in safe hands."

"Fine, just get on the dragon..." Romania grumbled. "I'm not walking to the edge of the forest." Flying mint bunny and Tinkerbell fidgeted.

"What do we do?" she asked Norway. Usually she'd go to England for orders, or do something on her own, but she didn't have any outstanding jobs and England was knocked out.

"Flying mint bunny, head to the school. England told me that Belarus sensed someone was watching them-"

"I'm on it," the bunny said, flying away.

"Tinkerbell, send a message to Amonor. We may be attacked earlier than planned. Tell everyone to lay low for a while, because after that incident," he was referring to America's protection spell, "No doubt the other nations are going to keep an eye out for anything magical." Tinkerbell nodded, and throwing some fairy dust into the air, she disappeared in a ball of light.

* * *

"If Angleterre has been hurt in any way, I will seek the most horrible revenge on you!" France shrieked. The Romanian Prime Minister, Victor Ponta, had caved and told them that the three had gone on a mission. Erna Solberg, the Norwegian Prime Minister, remained steadfast like her personification and refused to say anything more, and had stopped David Cameron and Victor Ponta from saying anything else.

"Yeah!" several other countries agreed. Their prime ministers were looking uncomfortable at this confrontation. Manuel Valls, the French Prime Minister, tried to reason with France.

"Now, France, really-"

"Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shut up! I do not care about politics right now! I do not care if this offends them!" he pointed at the three prime ministers under scrutiny. "All I care about is my beloved Angleterre! Oh! Ma belle angleterre! Comment il brille comme une étoile!"

"Excuse you." France turned to stare at America. "Your beloved? You keep your filthy French hands offa him!"

"How dare you!" screeched France. "Like he would ever love you! I have been with him his entire life! You are just a colony who left him! What would he ever see in you?!"

Everyone began backing up against the walls. "England would never love a freak like you! Stay away from him! He is MINE, got it Frenchie?!"

France threw his head back and cackled. "Really? If he is yours, why does he cry every 4th July? Why does he spend the night sleeping in my bed every Independence day? Why does he never come to your parties, but turn up to mine? Why does he choose to sit next to me at every world meeting?"

America had no answer.

"Face it! You are just a silly little colony to him! You have no chance with Angleterre!" he strode up to the American. "And if you do try something, I will make sure it ends it disaster!" He turned on his heel and strode out, flicking his hair so hard it knocked over Manuel. Manuel scrambled to his feet again, following his country. America growled angrily, clenching his fists. He ran after France, who was outside with the prime minister, trying to get past the reporters.

"OI, STUPID FRENCHIE!" the American roared. "YOU CAN CONSIDER THIS-" He bent over and picked up a rock, chucking it at France's head (where it made contact) in a childish gesture of anger, "- A DECLARATION OF WAR!"

"FINE!" France screeched, among the now silent reporters. "FRANCE AND AMERICA ARE NOW AT WAR! PRIME MINISTER! CONTACT THE ARMY!"

"OBAMA! GET THE ARMY!" America shouted, slamming the door shut. France threw open the door of the private car, ushering in his prime minister, a scowl on his pretty face. He ignored the shocked, silent reporters and climbed in himself, closing the door (he was never one to lose his grace [or so he thought]) and tapping the window for the driver to go.


	16. Chapter 16

**Ship wars just got real... Let's see which country ships USUK and which ships FRUK! The vote is closed, and the pairing decided.** **Oh, and I forgot to do this in the last chapter:**

 **Comment il brille comme une étoile! - How he shines like a star!**

 **In case you were wondering.**

 **Kayle X**

England groaned and awoke. Something small and warm was leaning against him, cuddling him. He blinked sleepily, trying to keep his eyes open. He was just tempted to go back to sleep, but the warm weight shifted and he forced his eyes to stay open. He felt groggy, and there was a throbbing at the back of his head. He briefly remembered Norway, and scowled.

He looked down, seeing that the warm thing was actually Belarus, who was sleeping peacefully against him. She had her cheek squished against his chest, and her knife was clutched in one hand. England huffed out a laugh. It was so like Belarus to go to sleep with a knife. Although he didn't want to disturb her peace, he shook her shoulder gently, and she came back into consciousness as well. She yawned cutely, before sitting up and holding the knife to his throat. England threw up his arms in surrender.

"Sorry," she said, taking the knife away. "But it's the only form of home security I've got." She looked around. "I can't hear anybody."

"I'm certain we're on our own," England said, pushing the girl off of him. He reached a shelf and drew down a whiskey bottle, holding out a shot glass to her. "Would you like a drink?" he offered politely. Belarus accepted, but the look on her face when she downed the shot said she had never consumed alcohol before. England laughed. "Sorry. It's more of an acquired taste, you see."

"I'll get used to it," she said, scraping her tongue with her teeth in an attempt to get the taste off. She reached over the bed and grabbed a remote, intending to turn on the TV, but when she looked around there wasn't one to be seen.

"Just press the on button," England told her, and Belarus decided to pretend she hadn't seen him sneaking in another swig of the bottle. She clicked the on button and suddenly a TV appeared out of the wall opposite the bed. Her jaw dropped, too surprised to change the channel. "It's pretty cool, isn't it? And it was invented by the British, not by the Americans..."

Belarus rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the TV. She froze when she heard what the reporter was saying. "Um, big brother..."

 _"A showdown between an American and French representative ended today with a declaration of war between the two countries. While there has been some rising tension between France and America, it had seemed to just be rivalry until today. Both leaders claim to be arguing over territory, but they refused to say any more when questioned. Here we have the footage of them fighting."_

America appeared, throwing a rock at France's head. They yelled at each other briefly, then both left the vicinity. England stared at the two angry countries. "I've never seen them fight before on such a personal level..." Then he became angry. "FOR GODS SAKE!" he yelled suddenly, scaring Belarus. "I LEAVE FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS AND THIS HAPPENS!?" He began muttering about 'bloody French frogs' and 'American gits'. He put the whiskey away, sighing.

 _"We were able to question them today, and here we have them live."_ The reporter turned to America and France, who were having a staring contest. _"Can you reveal anything new? Is a war really going to happen?"_

"Hey wait," Belarus said suddenly. She pointed at the house in the background. "Isn't that our - your house?" She corrected herself at the last minute. Anger forgotten, England smiled softly at her.

"Natalya, as far as I'm concerned, this is our house," he said. "You have as much right to be here as I do. You might not understand, but you saved me from my loneliness." He was suddenly tackled into a hug.

"You saved me too," she said into his shirt. "I lived so poorly and was so infatuated with Russia that I never saw anything but him. But then you came along, and now I have friends, I feel loved, and..." She looked up at him, her eyes bright. "And I have a brother to rely on."

England wrapped his arms around her, blinking back tears. He had never known she had felt this way. It wasn't like when America had been a colony, and England had loved him unconditionally, giving him everything he needed to survive and thrive. He didn't feel so protective or possessive of Belarus, and if she were ever to declare her independence he knew he would let her go willingly, if a little sadly. Their relationship was founded on an unsteady friendship, that itself had been formed on the desire to be surrounded with people and loved.

Perhaps they both had the same ache in their hearts, longing for that which was just out of reach; England for his sweet America, and Belarus for Russia. But they knew that they would never abandon one another, because even if England and Belarus were just neutral to one another, Arthur would always have a little sister in Natalya, and Natalya would always have a big brother in Arthur.

"But, you are right!" England declared. "That is OUR house, and I'm about to lay into them!" He stalked up to the window and threw it open. Belarus held back a laugh as she watched England's face appear on the TV as he began screaming at the two below. "FROG! GIT! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"

"Arthur!" France cried, turning to the angry Englishman. "You're OK!"

"Of course I am frog! What did you think happened to me?!"

"Arthur!" America yelled, capturing his attention. "I was so worried! Thank god you're all right!"

"Git! I'm always going to be okay," his voice softened slightly. France scowled, placing his hands on his hips. "BUT! What is all of this about a war!? I LEAVE YOU IDIOTS IN THE SAME ROOM FOR A TIME AND YOU GO AND DECLARE WW3?"

"Ah yes well - "

"WHAT TERRITORY COULD YOU POSSIBLY BE ARGUING OVER?! Have you discovered a new land?"

"Well," France said nervously. "I guess you could put it like that." America scratched the back of his head. England stalked back to the bed and grabbed his shot glass, before going back and throwing it at France's head.

"Stop being evasive and tell me! I am the representative for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland!"

"Do you know them?" The reporter cut in. England nodded.

"Yes, this is the French frog and the American git," he said, before demanding, "Well? Are you going to tell me or am I going to have to come down there and knock some sense into you?"

"Please come down! Ohonhonhonhonhon!" France chuckled. England closed his window with a snap.

"Natalya, can I borrow your knife?"

"... No."

A few minutes later, France left England's house sporting a bruised cheek, a busted lip and several broken bones not to mention a splitting headache. But he had groped England and tried to kiss him (with tongue). America didn't get off scot-free either. He had a huge bump on his head from where England had shoved him when he had tried to hug the English nation from behind. He had heard that people liked it when their partners did that, and as he wanted to be England's boyfriend, he had tried it. The reporter was trying to hold back a laugh as France made more kissy faces at England while he was being loaded onto the ambulance, who turned bright red.

"You're lucky there's an ambulance around, frog, or I would have broken your face as well!" he yelled, and slammed his door. America just got up and fell flat on his face as he had a mild concussion from where he had hit the ground. So they loaded him into the stretcher as well.

Belarus had come out as well, wearing a polka dot top and jeans, and was laughing as the ambulance took the two away. "Is it always like this whenever they get together?" the reporter asked. Belarus nodded.

"It's not a negotiations unless someone leaves with a bloody face," she sighed happily. "But that's the English for you." She winked at the camera.

"Natalya! Can you go and grab some sugar from the shop?" England yelled from inside. Natalya shouted back a confirmation and ran to the shop.

 **School is starting tomorrow so I might not update as much, maybe once every two weeks, depending on how much inspiration I get to write. Most of the events in this story have actually happened to me or friends. I punched my friend for hugging me from behind - I thought he was attacking me. Luckily he didn't end up in hospital, just with a severe nosebleed.**


	17. Chapter 17

Belarus jogged to the shop, taking in the sunshine and clouds, and the people around her. They were currently staying in England's town house, not his isolated one in the countryside. She wondered how they'd got there, but assumed it had something to do with Norway and Romania. She passed a flower shop on her way, and slowed down, peering in and looking at them.

She decided to go in, thinking it wouldn't be any harm. A fresh mix of fragrances hit her, filling her nose. She breathed in deeply, looking around. There were daises, all types of roses, daffodils, lavender, lillies, angelicas, everything. All types of flowers seemed to live in the shop. She even saw a venus fly trap at one point.

Something at the back caught her attention, and with uncomfortable memories rising, she realised it was a sunflower. A single sunflower, that was growing tall and strong. To say she didn't miss Russia was a lie - of course she missed him, but it was only in those nostalgic moments when she was alone (which was hardly ever nowadays). But the flower set off alarm bells in her head, and she turned to leave, hurrying out of the shop.

Her arm was caught as she was halfway through the door. "OI!" She shouted, and if the situation hadn't been serious, she could have laughed at how British she sounded then. "LET GO!" she wrenched herself free, turning to face the person who had detained her. Why did she stray off the path? It was the woods all over again -

 _Don't think of that!_ She scolded herself, as she looked into the purple eyes of her former brother.

* * *

England was just enjoying the sunshine from his window when his chest went cold. He pulled out his necklace, now containing the Belarus bead, and saw that that particular bead was icing over. He jumped up, grabbing his wand off the shelf and sending a magical message to the other magical nations, before tearing down the stairs and into the street.

He made straight for the shop, and burst in, ready for a fight - only to find it peaceful. "Mr Kirkland? Is everything all right?" the assistant asked him.

"Did a girl wearing a polka-dot shirt come in here? She has purplish eyes and blonde-ish hair..."

"No, no ones been here in the last hour or so, sir. Are you OK?"

England neglected to answer, hoping that the others would be here soon, as he rushed into every shop before the sugar one to see if she was inside.

* * *

"What do you want, Ru - Ivan?" Belarus asked, one hand keeping the door open. She wasn't stupid enough to let it swing shut. The purple eyes stared at her, but she refused to show any discomfort.

"I want to know what you see in him."

"Who -"

"YOU KNOW WHO! ENGLAND, ARTHUR KIRKLAND!" he screamed at her, and she flinched. He calmed down again immediately, getting even creepier than before. "What do you see in him?"

"He's kind -"

"He's a grump! We've all seen it in the meetings!"

"No he's not!" she defended. "He may be like that on the outside, but if anyone bothered to get to know him, they'd know he is kind, and sweet, and loyal. He genuinely cares for all the nations, even if they hate them, and he never raises his voice to anyone! Not even when I'm being difficult, he tries to calm me down, and he never rejects me when I need him! He's not scared of me and he certainly doesn't leave me in the snow to die!" She was glad seeing the guilt rise in Russia's eyes. "He's the best brother a girl could ask for - he's the best father a child could ask for - and as both, I treasure him completely because he is so precious and more wonderful than he realises. I wish I had been there to tell him that he does matter before he convinced himself that he's worth nothing in everyone's eyes." She stopped, amazed at the words that had come pouring out of her mouth, but she knew each and every one of them to be true. She turned and walked out, going straight home.

A figure stepped out in front of her. "Hiya, doll," the guy said. She glared at him, looking at his red eyes. Where had she seen them before? "Looking for a good time?"

"No. Please move." Her answer was short and curt.

"Too bad, 'cause I am." His eyes! They were the ones on the wall -

She dodged as his bat came whizzing down, taking out her trusty knife and cutting through his thick jacket. She cursed, realising that she would have to cut twice before she reached his skin and did any real damage. With some amusement, she took in his pink hair and busted eye. She felt pride at that - she had done that! England had probably done the hair thing - _or it could be natural. You never know with the 2ps,_ she thought. She slashed again, but got him in a different place.

Unfortunately, she had just sustained major injuries earlier that day, which meant she was not in good shape. Within minutes of the fight, she was tired. She turned and fled down the street, adrenalin being the only thing keeping her going. She whizzed past a blonde man, yelling "Sorry!" as she bumped his shoulder. Where could she go? Her mind recalled the events of the day. The world meeting! The conference room! She still had her conference pass on her, meaning she'd be allowed access into the building. It could give her time to think and contact Romania or Norway. With that thought in mind, she increased her speed, ignoring the cramps in her legs, speeding by everything without a second glance.

She stopped outside another shop, staring at the name. She grinned, pocketing her knife and going in. A quick break couldn't hurt.

* * *

England was shocked when a girl ran past him, shrieking her head off, but he was even more surprised when he saw Allen. His eyes met red, hard ones, and Allen smirked, slowing down. England almost used a blast on him, but remembered they were in public. He kept his hands to himself as Allen came up to him. "Realised the little princess was in danger, huh?"

"Yes, I did," was the cold response. Allen raised an eyebrow at the gun now pressed against his thigh. "Go away."

He showed no fear, just amusement. He wrapped his hand around the nose of the gun, and England tightened his grip on it - but not fast enough, because Allen had ripped it out of his hands and chucked it away. The forward force of the pull sent him careering into Allen, falling against his muscular chest. Before he could move, Allen had wrapped his arms around him, pulling him upright. "Oh hello there," he said darkly, his eyes betraying lust. England could feel something hard rubbing against his thigh, but he didn't want to think about that.

"Let go of me, you bloody wanker," he growled. He was completely immobile, his arms pinned to his sides.

"Why am I a wanker? With you around, I don't need to have a wank, as you would say," and he pressed England closer. England could feel heat creeping up his face, and sincerely hoped that the others were coming soon. Then he remembered he had magic, and pressed his hand against Allen's thigh. Allen chuckled, not seeing the glow of England's hand. "I didn't know you would give in so easily you little slu- ARGH!"

He loosened his grip on the blonde, a deep burn going right to his bone. Arthur shoved Allen over, and, on seeing the other 2p's running towards him, pulled a bottle out of his pocket and smashed it on the ground, shouting, "Take me far away!" Thankfully the street was deserted and only a few young children had witnessed the act of disappearance England did.

"Fuck!" Allen shouted, and the kids ran away. "I almost had him!"

"We said call us when you saw him - we could've captured him," Matt sighed at his brother. Francois grunted and stuck another cigarette in his mouth. He hadn't been smoking during their mission because the smell would repel people (which was what he wanted). "But you got too big for your boots."

"Well maybe if you had more balls than hair you could've caught the Romanian bastard," his brother shot right back. Oliver tutted, pink eyes swirling, the only indication of his anger.

"Now, now boys! Play nicely like the cupcake baby and yummy jammy I know you are!"

"WE'RE NOT IN THE FUCKING HOUSE! DON'T CALL US THAT!" Allen blushed at the name, scowling at his former caretaker, who simply threw back his head and laughed, holding out a swear jar.

"Well this is my country," his mood changed instantly, the smile dropping off his face, "Don't underestimate how much power I have over the grounds of this place. Now, cupcake baby, yummy jammy! Swear jar!" A couple of notes were dropped in by the two. "Oh, I love you, you yummy jammy!" Oliver decided to torture Matt in public instead for a change, thinking that his other former son had enough embarrassment for one day.

"Mum, no," groaned Matt, but he didn't stop Oliver as he began cooing over him and trying to smooth down his hair. "Mum, please, you're so embarrassing..."

"I swear to God you enjoy it when he does that," muttered Viktor, who had also volunteered to come. Matt glared at him, but didn't say anything, partly because he didn't have enough money on him for much swearing he wanted to do, and partly because Oliver had shoved a baby blue cupcake in his mouth.

"Such a pwecious baby you are, more pwecious than all the other little boys and girls, yes you are!" Oliver continued his stream of baby talk. The only time Matt felt truly embarrassed was when he saw Romania staring at them from across the street, and saw the display Oliver was putting on. He blushed, looking away from the vampire, who began to laugh behind his hand, clearly scared he was going to point him out. Matt didn't, and he felt the confused eyes of the Romanian watching him until he turned the corner with his dysfunctional family plus Viktor.


	18. Chapter 18

Romania watched the 2ps turn the corner, feeling more and more confused. The Canadian man had obviously seen him, so why didn't he point Romania out? More than that, where was England? He had sent an urgent message, saying Belarus was in trouble, but he didn't see either of them anywhere. His blood ran cold, but before he could call Norway, he was nearly knocked over by a light that was fizzing at the edges.

"Hi, Romania, Norway! I'm OK and in the conference building... I'm not sure what happened to big brother. Anyway, meet me here... And sorry if it accidentally hits you... I haven't really got the hang of this yet. Right, how do I send? This goes on forever... Oh, here it is!" Then the light faded out. Romania had to smile. Clearly she hadn't known she had to turn the transmission off before sending.

He was so caught up in his thoughts, he didn't notice someone coming up behind him.

* * *

 _OK_ _, this is my chance,_ Matt told himself, watching the Romanian from the sidelines. He had finally managed to break away from the others, with a promise to stalk and capture one of the quartet. Romania seemed to be the weakest out of the four, seeing as England had powerful magic, Belarus was good with weapons and Norway practical and had his troll. Romania did have a dragon, but he wouldn't risk exposure just to stop Matt.

Matt sneaked up behind Romania, watching as the light faded out. He raised his hockey stick above his head -

Just as Romania turned around. Romania froze and turned again to run in the other direction. Matt had a split second to make a decision. He grabbed the small Romanian, clamping a hand over his mouth when he shrieked. He struggled in the other's arms as he was hauled away.

Matt dragged Romania into a nearby alley, throwing him against the ground. Romania cried out as his back hit the floor, momentarily taken out. Matt used this opportunity to tie up his legs.

"G - Get off me!" Yelped Romania, unable to stop Matt as he grabbed his arms, tying them up as well. "Stop that!"

"Shut up," grunted Matt, ignoring the pang he felt at the Romanian's fright.

"ENGLAND!" Romania screamed, trying to summon his friend. Matt growled angrily, grabbing Romania by the cheeks, and lifting up his shades with the other hand, revealing his violet eyes.

"Shut. Up." He ground out, putting his face very close to Romania's. He picked up Romania, taking out a piece of paper. Oliver had written a spell on it that would take him to his house. He muttered the spell, vanishing without a trace.

* * *

Belarus stood up as someone came in. "Norway!" She said, glad to see a friendly face. Norway nodded, coming in and observing the bags next to her feet. "Is anyone with you? Besides..." She looked at his troll.

"No. I sent Romania to scout the area around England's house," came the reply. He pointed to the bags, coming closer. "What's that?" Belarus smirked, kicking them over. A huge array of weapons came sliding out, ranging from guns to swords and spears, loaded with ammo and ready to go. Norway took a step back. "Jesus!"

"I know," Belarus said smugly, reaching down and taking a handgun. She tucked it into her jeans. "Don't worry, they're all on safety lock. I'm not stupid. Now, are you going to take your pick, or are you going to wait for Romania and big brother to take the good ones?"

Norway smiled inwardly as he began pocketing ammo and weapons, handing some to his troll, which was next to him. He had noticed Belarus calling England 'big brother'. Had their relationship developed somehow? He wanted to know, but decided not to inquire at that moment. He was glad for England, because he had never seen the blonde any happier - there was a little bit of brightness on his face now, a little more spring in his step. He was so busy thinking about this and talking to Belarus about the others, he didn't notice the other nations.

"W - what the HELL?" yelled America, staring. Belarus jumped in front of the bag, but it was too late, the other nations and America had seen. "There's enough weapons in those bags to supply a small army!" He wasn't far off. Norway's troll had been sending them through a portal to Amonor's army. Norway remained stoic and silent, meeting his prime minister's eyes and agreeing to remain quiet. He folded his arms, coming to stand next to Belarus, who did look slightly nervous.

"Don't say anything," he murmured to her. "We need to wait for England's guidance - he's the only one who can really deal with the rest of the FACE family." When Belarus looked even more confused, he continued, "France, America, Canada and England - FACE."

"That's clever," she muttered back. America looked furious.

"Hey! What are you doing with those weapons?!" he shouted, advancing. "You look like you're about to go to war or something!" It was scary how accurate that was. The others, France and Canada leading, came in, gasping and putting their hands to their mouths.

"Where's England?" Canada said quietly - and this time everyone noticed him. "I can't see him." His curl bobbed frantically as he looked around. Belarus stood a little taller.

"Argh!" Norway made a noise of pain, clawing at his neck and ripping off the necklace there. His eyes widened in panic. "Romania... England..." The Romanian and English bead had iced over thickly, a sure sign that the nation was in deep trouble. "Oh god, no..."

Belarus exchanged a panicked glance with Norway. England was missing. Romania in trouble. The magical world had no leader. Not to mention a very pissed American and several other nations were barring their way out.

Could it get any worse?


	19. Chapter 19

"Where is he? Where's England?!" screamed America. France was equally as angry, if not more. Canada was crying, worried. The Norwegian prime minister, Erna Solberg, was scowling, standing next to Belarus.

"I'm afraid no information can be released - "

"You sound like a robot!" France snapped. Then he just stopped. He didn't look angry, just desperate. "Please... Just tell me... Is mon Angleterre safe? Happy?"

He was met with silence.

"Oh, non... Please..."

RING! "It's big brother," cried Belarus, answering the phone. America snatched it from her putting it on speaker so everyone could talk to him at once.

"England! I'm so glad you're OK - "

"Hello? Belarus, answer me."

"England it's us," Canada said, staring at the phone as if it would magically produce England.

"Belarus... Nattie... Please answer... I need to know you're OK."

"He can't hear us," Norway realised. "He can't hear us, but we can hear him."

"Is anybody there? Oh, god, I don't know where I am. I don't know, I don't know where I am. It's dark, it's silent. I hate this, Natalya... I've always hated the dark..."

France sobbed weakly, burying his face in Seychelles shoulder. Hong Kong looked pale, upset, and he reached out, taking China's hand. China looked surprised, but didn't object. Canada was leaning against his frozen brother. The other countries were shocked into silence.

"This could be the last time I'm alive. I didn't want to believe it, but wherever I am, it's slowly filling with water... I hear the drips from the other side of this place. My magic doesn't work here. All I did was cast a far away spell, to get away from THEM... But it brought me here... I don't know where I am. I could be in England, I could be on another bloody planet for all I know. I know you probably can't hear me, but I just want to tell you that you mean the world to me. Ever since America left - "

France looked triumphantly over at America, but his victory was short lived as he remembered where they were.

" - I felt like I was falling apart. After him, it just seemed to be a pattern... Australia... Seychelles... Canada... Hong Kong... France... Everyone I'd ever loved left me. I wanted to kill myself... I couldn't live... The others were constantly winding me up and laughing at me... I believed no one cared any more, especially my colonies.. My whole world turned grey. But then you came crashing into my life with your knife and your intimidation -"

Belarus had to laugh at that.

"And everything burst into colour again. I was looking out of the window and loving the day... I saw the beauty in rain.. I loved again. I love you, little sister. I really do. And... I do love someone else." England's tone changed, turning irritated. "But that bloody idiot drives me up the walls! The next time I see him, I am going to bloody wring his neck! Bloody fool can't hold a coherent bloody conversation..."

A few smiles appeared.

"Anyway, in case you can hear this, I want you to tell - KJSFHDJFHD - that I never stopped loving him, and if I get out of this alive, I'm coming back for him, to wring his neck! ... And possibly kiss him afterwards."

He hung up. "WAIT!" America suddenly yelled, scaring everyone. "Who does he like?! Where is he?! Urgh..."

"It seemed to be some interference," Norway observed. "Like someone was shouting in the background. Play it back, Belarus."

"How do I do that?" She asked. Estonia came forward, taking the phone from her, and clicking a few buttons. A moment later, he replayed the call.

 _"Anyway, in case you can hear this, I want you to tell - KJSFHDJFHD - that I never stopped loving him - "_

"Play it back, but slower," Belarus interrupted, tendrils of dread beginning to drift into her soul.

 _"Anyway, in case you can hear this, I want you to tell - Get off me!_ _DJFHD_ _\- that I never stopped loving him -"_

"Just that part..." She whispered, Norway had frozen in shock.

 _"Get off me! Norway! England! Shut up!"_ The last two words were uttered by a deeper male voice. Belarus felt her knees go weak.

"Romania..." Suddenly, she drew her gun and fired a shot at the other nations. They screamed and ducked, allowing Belarus to get through them. "Come on! We have to go, now!" She turned a corner, hearing Norway catch up to her. Faintly, America could be heard crying, "After them!" but she didn't concern herself with that. She couldn't let emotion get in the way of her better judgement. Everyone had been in shock, so that was the right time to run. And while a part of her wished to sink to her knees and cry for her brother, she knew she couldn't do that. She had been a damsel in distress too often! First from Russia, then from 2P Lithuania, the forest and after that 2P America.

Norway jumped down the steps, making straight for the Mcdonalds. She didn't stop but followed still, a little confused. "America has a car parked in Mcdonalds!" he shouted to her. Belarus nearly smiled. Typical America. She launched into the red convertible, landing in the driver's seat. Norway opened the door and quickly slid in, earning an eye-roll from the purple-eyed girl. "What?" he said defensively. He looked at their positions. "Shouldn't I be driving?"

"Nope!" she said, grabbing the clutch and hitting the gas with her foot. They went straight backwards. Norway had his seatbelt on, thankfully - so he didn't go flying into the back window when Belarus changed gears and started doing 70mph down the road. She swerved and dodged, breaking all traffic laws and setting the police after her. "Damn - it's the rozzers!"

"The... Rozzers?" Norway questioned. He remembered vaguely hearing it before.

"Whatever you want to call them! The Feds! The Popo! The police!" she shrieked, and made a turn onto a motorway. The police followed, blue lights flashing and sirens wailing. Usually she'd be on the side of the law. Norway clutched the dashboard, beginning to genuinely fear for his life. He looked down.

"Hit the clutch!" he hollered over the sirens. He changed gears, and the car put on a burst of speed. "Better?!" he shouted, even though he was beginning to panic. Belarus nodded, smirking slightly. Norway could see all the signs: Dilated pupils, straight back, flushed cheeks.

She was enjoying this.

And if he was being honest with himself, he was too.

 **Recently my friend and I have created an anime account on Instagram called yoursenpais. The profile pic is mochi Italy. Follow us please! Help us reach 100 followers.**


	20. Chapter 20

Belarus pulled up at the high school. She laughed, "Wooo! Let's do that again, Norway! ... Norway?" She looked over, to find Norway curled up and shivering in the back-seat. His left eye was twitching, trying not to remember all the horrible near misses he had had on the car journey there. Now he regretted not taking over from Belarus to drive, and pumping up the speed. Belarus reached out and touched him. "Um..."

"F - fine... I'm f - fine..." Norway said after a couple of seconds. He jerkily climbed out of the car, nearly collapsing from his wobbly legs. Belarus came to his aid, helping him limp into the school.

Once they were inside the Starlight Guardian, and Norway was safely curled up under a blanket (crying, but Belarus didn't know that), Belarus looked around, staring at the bookshelf. Admittedly, she had no idea what to do next, and as Norway was currently out of action, she had no one to talk to. Once again, she wished England hadn't got himself kidnapped (or Romania, but that was inevitable).

Going to Russia or Ukraine was laughable, and she had no idea how to contact Amonor. She had thought about Tinkerbell, but she was in Neverland as she had written a quick apology note to England and taped it to the door of the Starlight Guardian. Jack... How would she contact Jack? Not to mention it would take him time to get there. She knew he was in the Arctic, from the news reports talking about the increased levels of ice there.

She gasped, clicking her fingers. Minty! She could call Minty! She had seen England call him on several occasions. Tentatively, she clicked her fingers three times and whispered, "Minty...? I need your help. Come, please?" A green shimmer appeared in the air, and Belarus grinned. Slowly, it turned brown. "Minty! Thank god! You would not-"

An unearthly howl came from the brown shimmer, and completely red eyes stared out at her. She was frozen in place, as before her very eyes, she saw a brown thing emerge. Her first thought was it was a bunny on steroids, because it definitely was a bunny - but as she dived to the ground, narrowly missing it's claws, her brain began to work again and she realised it must be the 2P's doing. The thing howled again, but this time Belarus was ready with a spell on her lips - an ensnarement spell.

"Eruna editius!" she yelled, and ropes came from nowhere, trapping the bunny. It roared, and quickly, Belarus looked around for a cage. She pulled open the cupboard doors, panic building as she heard the ropes beginning to tear. She spotted a Harry Potter book lying idly on a nearby table, and, stuck for anything else to do, she yelled, _"Accio cage!"_

To her surprise, there was a grinding noise, and the roof nearly fell in as a cage came flying in her direction. The bunny had broken free by now, and was also flying towards her, claws ready to take her eyes out (a gift from 2P America, she thought) but she remained standing still, glancing between the cage and the bunny.

CRASH! She closed her eyes as she fell to the floor, sincerely hoping that her plan had worked. Opening one eye, she nearly recoiled into the shelf behind her as a little, sharp paw was trying to reach her. The bunny growled, straining to free itself, but it was an exercise in futile, as the cage held firm. She breathed out deeply, getting up and picking up the cage. She hesitated before placing it in a slightly larger cage. You could never be too careful.

"What the hell are you?" she muttered, observing the chocolate growling thing. "Some kind of... Winged Chocolate Bunny?"

It growled angrily at her, and while it looked pretty scary she didn't feel too bad any more. She jumped, pulling out her knife as someone came crashing in through the door. "England?! You called?!" came a sweet boy's voice - one she knew. She laughed, putting her knife down and approaching Minty.

"Minty! -" She stopped and stared. In front of her was a little bunny. The bunny stopped, and with a poof, turned into Minty. He looked very nervous, a smile plastered on his face.

"Hiya Belarus!" he laughed. Belarus stared, rubbed her eyes, and stared again.

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

"OK, look," Minty sighed, putting a hand to his head. "I'm a Flying Mint Bunny - a rare magical creature that can transform into a human being. We've been doing it for centuries against people who want to use our powers maliciously." Belarus turned her head, looking at Flying Chocolate Bunny. Minty followed her gaze and exclaimed in fright and horror. "Oh, goodness! Where is Norway, Romania?! AND master?!"

"Um, that's the thing..."

* * *

America was searching through the weapons bag, pulling out weapons that ranged from OK to hella dangerous. He sighed wearily, England's words resonating in his head. He can't have hurt England that much right? _I mean,_ he reasoned, _we have a pretty good relationship right now. Or is that just our physical countries...?_ He groaned and let his shoulders slump. Nothing was going right today! Belarus and Norway had escaped, and England was in trouble, not to mention he was preparing for a possible war with France (who he didn't dislike - that made it worse) and the fact his boss had loaded a ton of paperwork on him about the war! There was paperwork for everything nowadays...

"America?" Canada lay a hand on his brother's shoulder. "We located them. They're at the school."

"The school? Why would they go there?"

"I don't know - but -" Canada paused, hesitating. America stood up.

"Bro..."

"They must have placed some kind of protection around it... No one can get in. It's impossible. The doors and windows won't break."

"DAMN IT!" America yelled in sudden anger, causing his brother to jump back and the other countries to stare at him, "Why does this have to happen now?!" He felt extremely confused at everything, and in the back of his mind, he knew England was replacing him with Belarus... He didn't like that. "We are going over there, and we are going to get in - by sheer force!" he stormed out, the other countries following his lead.

* * *

Romania rubbed his eyes and woke up. The first thing he felt was wetness. Peering around the darkness, he could see another figure near him. He crawled hesitantly towards the figure, the water sloshing slighty. Reaching out and shaking their shoulder, the figure stirred, then looked at him. "Romania!" they gasped, in a very British voice.

"England!" Romania flung himself onto the British nation, hugging him tight, and England returned the hug. "I don't know how he got me - he was so stealthy - I -" He was silenced by a finger to his lips.

"Romania I don't blame you. But Norway and Belarus are still out there, and fighting."

"What about the - the key?"

"It's in safe hands... Safer hands than you could ever imagine. The person who has it doesn't even know they have it." England sighed, thinking of his family. "I just hope the 2P's don't figure out who it is..."

"That's all we needed to hear."

Bright, white lights came on, nearly blinding him. His hand flew to his face, shielding his eyes. "What the hell?" England snapped.

Once his eyes had adjusted to the light, he looked upwards, to see 2P Italy, Luciano, standing over them. Allen's voice rang out again.

"You gonna tell us where the key is, or is my friend going to have to wear out his knives?" England flipped the finger at the ceiling, not sure where the camera was, and Allen sighed. "They're fucking yours, Luci-"

"Sweeeeear jaaaaar!"

"Shut the fuck up old man! How the fuck did you get past security anyway?!"

"Sweeeer jaaaaar! And cupcake baby, once I told them who I was, they just let me through!"

"I AM NOT A FUC-" the transmission was cut off, presumably as Oliver turned it off to prevent any nasty swears being heard by the guests. Luciano smirked and turned to his two prisoners.

"Heheheh," he giggled -

SLAM! He was out like a light. Romania growled angrily, fangs coming out and pupils dilating. England was still sitting on the floor, shocked. "Romania..." Romania growled again, going next to England and snuggling up protectively beside him. England sighed, looking around at the slowly rising water around them. At least that had bought Belarus and Norway some time.

* * *

Over in America's empty house, it was dark. The lights were off, the cleaners had gone home for the day, and all was silent. Not a single soul was there, not even a mouse. There was no sound inside, except, if you listened, the slight roar of cars far away.

In a particular deserted room, one America himself had not entered for some time now, was a uniform. A Revolutionary War uniform. It lay, unloved, in America's storage room. That wasn't the item of interest, though. The chest that was gathering dust next to it, had a glow, even though there was no electronics in it. Inside were an assortment of things, including toy soldiers which England had made for America.

One of these soldiers had begun to shine...


	21. Chapter 21

_Over in America's empty house, it was dark. The lights were off, the cleaners had gone home for the day, and all was silent. Not a single soul was there, not even a mouse. There was no sound inside, except, if you listened, the slight roar of cars far away._

 _In a particular deserted room, one America himself had not entered for some time now, was a uniform. A Revolutionary War uniform. It lay, unloved, in America's storage room. That wasn't the item of interest, though. The chest that was gathering dust next to it, had a glow, even though there was no electronics in it. Inside were an assortment of things, including toy soldiers which England had made for America._

 _One of these soldiers had begun to shine..._

Belarus, after extracting a lengthy explanation from Minty about his magic and what Flying Chocolate Bunny was, went to get Norway. She knocked on the door of the room he was in, peeking in. He was standing over a map, blankets discarded. In one of his hands he held a necklace, one similar to the one she had seen in England's house barely 2 months ago. Has that much time already passed, she wondered, then her attention snapped back to the necklace. It had a purple crystal on the end, and Norway was moving it over the map slowly and methodically. "What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to locate England," Norway replied without looking up. "England built this place - it's practically made from him. I just extracted some of his DNA from the walls and put it inside the crystal.

"It's made from him?" she asked, amazed. She looked around the Starlight Guardian with new eyes. Suddenly she was seeing all the English things - the flag painted on the far left wall, the way the walls were almost pulsating with life; the overall friendly vibe the place seemed to give off. It wasn't like that when she'd first arrived, oh no, the place had been cold, but as England had warmed up to her, let her inside his heart, so had the room, and it was almost like a second home to her.

"Well, I helped with the construction - and when we had to rebuild it after WW2, Romania added his own personal touch, but it's mainly England. He poured his heart and soul into the place." Norway's eyes left the map, going to Belarus. "And I'm sure, when he gets back, he'll want you to make your own contribution." Belarus was about to reply when there was a high pitched whine, and the crystal shuddered and pulled itself down onto a particular spot on the map. Norway fist pumped the air and gave one of his rare smiles. "Yes!"

"Have you found him?!" she asked excitedly. Norway nodded, leaning over the map. She ran forwards, unable to help herself. Her eyes fell on the place where England and Romania were being kept. Her smile faded. "But that's -"

"MINTY!"

* * *

America, meanwhile, paused. He had been in a rage, trying to figure out how to get into the school - but a strange feeling rose in his chest. He turned around and told his brother in quiet tones.

"A beat? Isn't that your heart?" Canada questioned.

"No, a different beat... Like... I don't know!" he said helplessly, waving his hands in the air. "I really don't know... But I think I should go home. I feel like I should go home." He felt like his home was in great danger, but he didn't know why. Canada opened his mouth -

"Hey, America, uh... Canada...? We found a way in! Come on!" Spain yelled, running towards the brothers. America pushed down his feelings (all of them) and ran after Spain, his brother following.

"How did you manage to get in?"

"The tea bastard's friends didn't cover the emergency exit," Romano grunted. He, France and Denmark were prising off the metal grille that led to the murky depths of the school. America put one hand on it and ripped it off, jumping into the empty passageway and yelling "Come on!" after his shocked friends. They followed him all the way up, where they ended up in Siesta Club, where Italy was sleeping peacefully. "FRATELLO?!" Romano shrieked.

Italy jerked awake. "~Ve?~ Big brother?" Italy said, confused. Romano grabbed his neck and began head-butting him. Italy wailed in fear and pain. "Big brother stooooop!" Stoooop!"

"Idiota!" Romano roared. "We just spent the last half hour trying to break into the school when you could have let us in! Bastard! I know you heard me yell!"

"Bu - But big brother I was tired! Ow!"

"There's no time for this," cried Belgium, grabbing Romano by the shoulders and pulling him back (Romano went slightly red in the face at his former crush doing such a thing). "We have to save England!"

"Right!" Russia yelled. "We must save enemy England! To the Magic Club!" he lead the charge towards the said room. America, who was literally a step behind, grinned despite himself. If the governments of the world could see them now, following Russia... He looked around and saw that the feeling was mutual, by the slightly amused faces of his companions. Maybe peace wasn't so far away after all.

They all ran down the corridor, their hearts, minds and feet as one, with one purpose - save England. Many nations, especially his former colonies, did care about him, and then there was Romano, who actually loved English culture and liked to dress up as Sherlock whenever he went over to England's house. England was his bro. Or Spain, who, despite being rivals with England in the past, actually found him to be funny and a good sport.

"Argh!" Russia smashed straight through the door of the Magic Club, and they came to a halt, staring at the wonders inside. America's jaw dropped as he looked around, turning to take everything in. It was, just like the name, absolutely magical.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" hissed a voice, and Norway, eyes full of fire, appeared in a cloud of mist. America yelped and jumped back. Norway strode forwards, poking America hard in the chest. "None of you have been given permission to enter this place!"

"What the hell is going on with you?!" growled Seychelles. "Dad goes missing and suddenly you're preparing for an all-out war!"

"WOAH!" Belarus cried, appearing in a cloud of mist in the air. She crashed to the ground, landing with a dull thud. "Argh... That hurts..."

"You'll get better," Norway told her sympathetically, then turned back to the group. "OUT! GET OUT!" A mysterious black smoke began to surround them. The nations looked around, panicked. America, however, along with Russia, stepped forward, struggling against the mist.

"Just tell us what the hell is going on!"

"No! You cannot help us! This war is ours to fight! Well, it wouldn't be if you hadn't been an idiot - "

"What?!"

"Not the point! OUT, GET OUT!"

"No!" America yelled back. "Where the hell is England?! And what the fuck are you doing?"

"Natalya," Russia pleaded, using Belarus's human name. "Please, let us help you." Seeing that her resolve was wavering, he pleaded again. "Please. I only want to help."

"Norway," Belarus said quietly. "Maybe we should - "

EWOOOOO! EWOOOOO! Norway immediately stopped trying to force them out, expressing turning frightened. "Oh no... Not now, they must have known we were weak," he said, face pale.

"What? Who?" Denmark asked, a bit scared at seeing his usually stoic friend so scared. He turned to them, gaze sweeping over them. Then, in one quick hand motion, he slammed the doors shut.

"You're about to find out."


	22. Chapter 22

"We're about to find out...?" America questioned. Norway's mouth had set in a grim line, and Belarus was looking unusually frightened. On seeing her expression, Norway pushed Belarus behind him.

"Stay behind me - only use spells you know. Have you got your knife?" he asked her, ignoring the other countries. She nodded, producing a knife that glowed with light. "Oh, England must have put a spell in to let you know when they're near..."

"I want England," Belarus whispered. The girl suddenly felt as she had, two months ago, standing on Russia's doorstep. Fright built up inside of her. This was nothing like she imagined. She was not fighting in glorious battle like she had done before in various wars. England was not by her side. Instead, they were trapped inside a school, a place in the middle of the public world, with no defences, no leader and practically no weapons. Then there were the other countries, who had no magic and no idea what was going on. Norway was her only ally in the situation, but that wasn't enough - there were bound to be at least 8 powerful second players, judging by what she'd experienced and heard from England.

An arm was wrapped around her shoulders. "Me too," Norway whispered back.

EWOOOOOO! EWOO -

The alarm stopped, all that was left was silence. America, sensing a fight, pulled out his gun, glancing at Russia, who was covering Lithuania almost unconsciously, teeth bared at the door. Seychelles and Canada stared as well, tensing, having no weapons. Spain, who had pulled Romano and Italy behind him, despite their protests, had a long sword out, ready to fight. France pressed a handkerchief to his mouth to hide a gasp, but drew two guns from his back pocket and handed them to Canada and Seychelles.

"Papa?" they stammered, looking at him.

"Protect yourselves, _petits enfants_ ," he said, stroking their hair. "If you die I will have nothing to live for."

Belarus felt her heart go out to the Frenchman. He might act like a pervert, constantly hit on anything that was blonde and vaguely human (England), annoy the hell out of everyone and just be a bad influence on everyone and everything, but he had just willingly disarmed himself so his peace-loving children could defend themselves. Now he stood tall, trying not to let his fear show. Spain drifted over to him. "Together," he said. Prussia, who had been covering Germany, joined them now, leaving the Axis powers and Romano together.

"Together," he agreed.

"Yooohoooo!" came a voice, from far away. "This place is empty as fuck!"

"Oh, hush, Ally. They're here. Including England's brats." America growled lowly.

"Why should we care about the brats? And I'm not fucking Ally! It's Allen, bitch!"

"Swear jar! Because parents always become very co-operative when their offspring become involved. I should know, after all," and high pitched laughter rang out. It sent shivers down Seychelles spine and she pressed closer to Canada, hardly daring to breathe. "We just need to find a young one."

"How 'bout my fucking counterpart? LET'S SEE IF HE LIKES HIS HAIR PINK!"

"Yet you don't give a shit about your eye," Another voice came, un-amused and Russian.

"Swea-"

"Bitch, I'm getting fucking stabbed by you every fucking day! That bitch Belarus is gonna pay, though..."

"-r jar!"

"Where's Magic Club?" grunted someone. Footsteps approached. "I can't see it." America could hardly breathe, or move. They sounded like they were right outside, and judging by the shadows, they probably were. Italy suppressed a whimper, knowing it could give them away. The footsteps came closer. "No, dead end..."

"Oooooh, Francy! You're actually talkin - that wasn't a very nice thing to do with your fingers!" the high pitched voice whined. "NEITHER was that! Jammy, why is your hair like that?" One of them started laughing, presumably Allen.

"Dad, no," groaned a fifth voice. "Dad, please leave me alone... SHUDDUP, CUPCAKE BABY!" At this, Allen stopped laughing.

"I told you never to fucking say that!"

"No fighting! Why can't you just get along? We're here to kidnap and kill, remember!" the way he said it made it sound normal, and that was what scared America - and everyone else - the most.

"Hey, wait a fucking minute..." Allen growled. "Can you smell that...?" Belarus gasped, looking towards the inner sanctum door. She had left it open - _and a potent potion was cooking inside._

She crept towards the door, each footstep sounding like a crash in her ears. Her palms, she noticed, were extremely sweaty, and this gave her a bit of trouble as she fumbled to close the door. She caught a whiff of parchment, cologne and peppermint - England's smell. Tears sprung to her eyes.

CRAASH! It was nobody's fault, in the end. The wall, which had been wearing away for quite some time, caved in on the side of the inner sanctum door, causing a huge ruckus.

The main door flew open. "Hello, _America."_

* * *

Romania slammed himself against the wall again and again. His necklace with his precious beads was extremely cold, to the point it was freezing over. It lay, abandoned, underneath the water on the floor. England was using magic, trying to take down the magical barriers, but he was shivering, the water up to his waist now.

He splashed over to the other side of the room, then ran at the highest speed he could with the water dragging him down. It barely even made a dent in the reinforced wall. If there wasn't any water, he would have sank to his knees in despair. He looked towards England, but he was staring at something else. England met his eyes.

"Do it," he confirmed, backing up against the wall he had so desperately been smashing against. He closed his eyes and prayed his friend would survive, as pain filled his body.

* * *

"Where is enemy England?" snarled Russia. "Give him back!"

"ARRRRRRGH!"

"Norway!" Belarus cried, as Norway screamed at the top of his voice. He fell to the floor, writhing and convulsing in pain. "NO! Norway!" Russia had the sense to pull his former sister back, as a blue light - an aura - left his body. The air above him burst into red and green light. The green light was surprisingly familiar...

"England?" She whispered. The red and green light merged, crashing into a cascade of yellow light. The blue aura joined it, making it burst into green glitters. It danced in a wave, before being sucked back into Norway's still body.

That was when she realized her friend wasn't moving. She broke free of Russia's grip, which had loosened anyway, almost tripping over her skirt as she scrambled towards him. "Nor?" she asked. She didn't dare touch him. "Nor, please..."

"Eeeeeeeek!" Norway suddenly said, sitting upright and knocking Belarus over. "Ooooopsy, sorry, Bel!" His voice changed. "You idiot! I told you not to go first!" His voice changed a third time. "Guys please, this is my body..." Belarus backed up, wondering if the hit on her head was making her go crazy. "Idiot, No-chan! Let me speak," snapped Norway. Norway got up off the floor, brushing himself down. "Nattie, it's me, England..."

"Shit," Allen said, eyebrows raised. France jumped about a foot in the air - he hadn't noticed Allen had crept up behind him and was practically breathing down his neck.

"It must seem a little bit crazy - hey, the 2p's are here! Eeeek! - Shut UP, Romania! - Please stop, this is strange - But we have merged into one person," Norway/England/Romania continued.

"Uh..." Belarus was a bit shocked.

"But whatever, let's fight," snarled England, then he jumped. "Eeek! Nooo! I don't wanna! Guys, please, can I just take over? ROMANIA WHEN I GET OUT OF HERE, YOU'RE DEAD! I'm regretting this now..."


	23. Chapter 23

**So there are only a few chapters left (I think), so I need to start thinking about my next story. I'll just give you the names, possible synopsis's and a taster of the ones I have in mind:**

 **Don't Ask Questions - Romano hates Germany. Germany knows that. He hates him with a passion that nobody could match. So why was it that Romano was standing on** _ **his**_ **doorstep, with tears and a very large bruise on his face?**

Romano ran. He ran and ran and ran, slipping and sliding through the rain, trying to get away from the pain, the shock - trying to get away from _him_.

"Romano, please, stop!" He ran faster, ignoring the screeches of sudden-stopping cars as he tore across the street.

Where could he go? Feliciano? No, his house was too far, another mile at least. France - but France would surely side with _him_ , and he didn't want to go back to _him_.

A light made him stop. He stared at the door of the house, debating.

"Romano!"

He ran up to the door, sniffling. Anything was better than _him._

 **~oo~**

 **Father, who are you? - Russia has no parents. But when he is in danger, a figure appears. A figure clad in red. A figure who carries a sword. A figure who's face is hidden. A figure who is his father. But who is he? Why does he refuse to show his face?**

The sword slashed through the air, drawing blood and killing without mercy. It sung a deadly song as it swung, taking out every enemy in sight. It's owner, a red pirate, moved just as gracefully, never pausing, never showing mercy, never getting hit by the bullets the Americans, Chinese, French and English were raining down on him and the Russians.

Russia himself watched with wide eyes, as within minutes, the white snow was red with blood, and the soldiers lying on the snow were not Russian.

The blade ended on a high note, as the last soldier fell. It dripped with blood, glistening in the harsh sunlight. The pirate walked towards Russia, who was still lying on the cold snow, too tired, too weak to move. His sword dragged in the ground, being purified again. Russia looked up at the pirate, his face hidden beneath the hat.

To his surprise, the pirate slid off one of his blood drenched silk gloves and lay a hand on Russia's cheek. "Look at you," he said softly. "You've grown so much, my child."

 **~oo~**

 **To be Cured (Harry Potter Crossover) - Fifth year starts dark, with the Ministry and war looming over Harry and his friends. An irate Italian arrives at the school to teach history of magic, with his sick friend, who is receiving treatment for a time jump. Harry needs to find friend from foe while dodging Umbridge and the Ministry, and trying to work out what the hell 'hetaoni' is.**

"ARE YOU LISTENING WEASLEY?!" roared Professor Vargas, slamming his hand onto Ron and Harry's table. Ron jumped.

"Y - yes," stammered Ron.

"STOP FUCKING LYING, WEASLEY! 20 POINTS FROM GRYFFINDOR!" He whirled around, pointing at Malfoy. "AND YOU! STOP LAUGHING, LITTLE BITCH! 20 POINTS FROM -"

"Oh, Feli, don't be so harsh," a voice called. A man appeared in the back door, the one that lead to Professor Vargas's room. He smiled in a fatherly way, before frowning at the frightened faces of the students. "Oh, Feli..."

He was blonde, with black thick eyebrows that were only thicker than the dark circles underneath his eyes. He was wearing standard wizard robes, leaning against a pair of crutches. His green eyes swept over the classroom, sighing softly.

Professor Vargas strode over to him. "You shouldn't be up. You're sick," and Harry's eyes widened in shock. He had no idea the Professor could speak so softly.

"I'm fine," the man insisted. He came out, wincing slightly. Vargas was a step behind him, one hand on his back. "Hello, children. I'm Professor Kirkland, and I will teach History of Magic with Professor Vargas as soon as I recover."

Harry decided he definitely liked this softly spoken, more fatherly teacher better than the irate, loud and angry Italian who was currently glowering at every single child in the room. Vargas growled, pulling the other professor away. "Come on. You're not better yet, Arthur."

"You can have those 20 points back," Professor Kirkland said kindly to Ron. Ron nodded. "Right, I'd better get back..."

 **~oo~**

 **So that's that! Which one? Or do you guys have any story ideas for me? OK, let's start the chapter now...**

"Hehehehee!" giggled Oliver, immediately lunging at America. America did a backflip, hitting Oliver in the face and sending him to the ground. "Aw, come on!"

"DON'T HIT MY DAD!" roared Matt, advancing on the bespectacled nation, hockey stick raised. Viktor snatched Spain by the neck, who began to choke.

"Antonio!" cried France, and though he was weaponless, he threw himself at Viktor's mercy, grabbing his hair and pulling the taller Russian back. Spain had his sword out in a second, battling Allen, who had tried to get to Canada and Belarus.

The girl herself was protecting Sealand. No one had noticed him coming in (he definitely was taking after Canada) and was now hiding behind her as she fought. He was just a child! He was also someone who could be very vulnerable, and perfect as a bargaining chip for the 2ps. Belarus wasn't a fool - she had seen the cheques, the phone calls, the sneaky glances England had sent the younger nation. Sealand, of course, had no idea of this. England called Sweden, who he was very good friends with, checking up on Sealand, making sure he got everything he wanted for Christmas, Easter and his birthday, but also making sure that he never knew. If anyone - especially the 2ps - had seen him doting on the younger nation openly, they would have snatched him at the beginning, Belarus knew. The only reason they were targeting her, and America, Canada, Seychelles and Hong Kong was because England had openly doted on them. It was for his own protection.

And he never even knew. Now, she looked towards the magic trio - who were quite literally one person, one mind and one body. She saw the flash of England's green eyes, her big brother, looking towards her from Norway's body, and saw the worry - and realized she needed to get out. She ached for the glory of battle, but not like this. Never like this. She grabbed Sealand's hand.

"We have to leave," she told the younger boy urgently, in a crazy moment of clarity amidst the battle raging around them. For once the boy complied, clutching her hand as she struggled to get out. The Magic Trio saw her again, and England took control, blasting a spell that cleared a path for them.

"GO!" their combined voices yelled, not just at her, but to Canada, Seychelles and Hong Kong (Taiwan, who was next to him was chopping 2P's down like trees. Never mess with her teatime) - basically all the younger nations. Canada threw his gun at Seychelles, who caught it and began firing double rounds in quick sucession. Canada hauled France up who was near unconscious. After all, you didn't jump on Viktor without consequences. The 3 ran out, with Canada leading the way to Canada club and locking the door. With help from the other two, he lay France down, using his jacket as a pillow.

"Hello again."

Canada jumped. Sealand screamed.

* * *

Back in Magic Club, America was still fighting 2P!England. The strawberry blonde was cackling madly, ignoring the wounds America had inflicted on him, carrying on with the same speed and agility he had at the beginning of the fight. America saw his bro had gone, along with Sealand, and thanked anyone who was watching for their safe escape.

Oliver saw this as a chance to take him down, He cut across America's neck, relishing the scream that came with it, watching as the delicious blood came pouring out and onto the knife. He licked it greedily the metallic taste being like the food of angels. "Mm... Your blood is delicious, may I have some more?" he giggled, grabbing America's front and lifting the struggling nation up. He licked the gushing wound, lapping up all the blood of the younger nation. A hand came out of nowhere, catching Oliver across the face, and in his surprise, he let go of America, who vanished. It only took another second to see that it was the Magic Trio that had stopped him. He giggled, but stopped abruptly.

Norway's eyes were completely black, the sign of a feral vampire. Romania was in control, and although the smell of blood - especially a nation's blood - was driving him absolutely mad, his friends, who were inside Norway's body's head, were just about keeping him sane. He screeched and attacked Oliver, fast enough to keep out of the way of his knife and land some damaging blows. Before he could land the killing blow, however, a hockey puck came hurtling in his direction, knocking out some of Norway's teeth.

"Argh!" Romania heard Norway scream from inside his own head. Romania looked up through Norway's eyes to see a raging Matt above him.

"England, weapons are your specialty!" he shouted, letting England take the reins and retreating to help his Norwegian friend. England, who hadn't actually had any time in Norway's body, except at the beginning, flopped awkwardly to the side, narrowly avoiding a vengeful hockey stick as it crashed into the ground. He briefly glimpsed his 2P crying his eyes out, which only fueled the anger his heart had. He staggered up, trying to get used to the speed and size of Norway's body while dodging the furious blows.

"DON'T TOUCH MY DAD, FUCKTARD!" screamed Matt. Allen chuckled from where he was fighting Romano and Italy. "YOU'RE DEAD!"

"It wasn't even me, you imbecile," England couldn't resist saying, slapping him across the face. He grabbed the end of the stick, throwing it (and Matt) into the ceiling. Then, he turned his attention to Allen Jones. "Jones!"

Allen threw Romano out of the window. Italy screamed. "You - You - He's - We're on the 3rd floor - you!" He couldn't even get a coherent sentence out anymore, half mad, half crying for his big brother. Allen turned towards him, and Italy edged away, too scared to defend himself.

"I know," he grinned maliciously, then looked towards the Magic Trio. He trumped to England, making sure to trample over Iceland as he went. England felt Norway's cry of anger as his baby brother screamed in pain, half conscious.

Spain managed to throw 2P!China off, with China pulling his super kick then turning to 2P!Japan. 2P!Japan, however, was completely focused on the other fight going on between England and 2P!America. China rolled his eyes, watching as Japan cut down his dumb counterpart, shooting a slight smile in his former caretaker's direction. Yao smiled back, then ran to assist Russia, who was furiously attacking Viktor.

"Jones," England seethed. Allen just grinned, swinging his bat lazily.

"Whaddaya want, _Iggy?"_ Allen mocked. Then he cackled. "Oh, Iggy, come save me! Iggy don't be sad! I'll be your hero!" His laughter stopped. "Love me, Iggy. I love you, _Arthur."_

England pushed back his feelings, not trusting his - or rather Norway's mouth - to come out with something smart - or anything that might reveal his feelings.

"Oh..." Oliver murmured, his eyes lighting up with a pink glow. "Oh..."

"What?" he snapped, grateful that Spain was backing him up. He jumped slightly, feeling Spain's hand on his back.

"It seems..." the room vanished suddenly, and suddenly they were standing in a white room full of water. The countries looked around, screaming when they saw two floating bodies. The bodies were not rotten, but simply drifting through the water, their skin extremely pale.

"Those shoes... England?" whispered Spain. He moved forwards, reaching out, but his hand just went straight through. England ran forward and grabbed Spain's hand, pulling him around to face him. "England -"

"I'm right here," England said urgently. "Don't. I'm right here." Spain's breath hitched as he looked at his former enemy, now best friend. How had he ever fought against this lovely being?

"HHAHAHAHAHA!" laughed Allen. He grinned the couple, who were still holding hands. England quickly let go. "Looks like we have your bodies now..."

"And you can't stay with your little curly blonde friend forever," giggled Oliver. "Sooner or later, you'll have to go back to your own bodies. Which means..."

"Bye bye," Allen smirked maliciously, and they were gone.

"Oh no..."

* * *

"Oh no..." Belarus shook slightly, grabbing Sealand's arm and gripping it.

"Ha, remember us, little lady?" sneered the captain. "Us boys from the forest... We're gonna give you what ya deserve!"

The men surrounded her and her friends. "No, stop!" she screamed, struggling as they lifted her up and forced her mouth open. The captain pulled out a knife, walking slowly towards her, knife glinting in the light. A wave of fear overtook her as he pressed the knife against her tongue -

"Daniel?" Canada was standing up, staring at the captain. The captain turned around.

"Matthew...?"

 **Its heating up now... but I'm going to put up a poll so you can vote on what story, or PM me with story ideas!**

 **Edit: So many mistakes, sorry!**


	24. Chapter 24

**To Be Cured: 4**

 **Don't Ask Questions: 1**

 **Father, Who Are You?: 1**

 **It would make it a lot easier if you guys ACTUALLY USED THE POLL ON MY PROFILE! Sorry. It's just annoying counting the reviews/votes then the actual poll. Not brilliant at maths...**

 **Those are the poll results so far. I'll put a reminder on each chapter as the poll will run until the end of this story. (I've already started writing To Be Cured, so better get voting if you want a different story... Synopsis is in chapter 23.)**

 **And I'm so sorry for not updating! My gran had a heart attack and we went to see her then the doctors discovered a tumor or something so I completely forgot...**

"We need to get to a safe distance - We might not make it out even with my speed! - Even so, there are human lives at stake!" Norway, Romania then England yelled. "We need to save as many people as possible!"

"We still have time to save ourselves -" Norway muttered. "Romania can you get us there?"

"Yeah, but it will be seriously tight - we'd have to leave now! - Then what are you bloody waiting for, take over and go!" yelled England, and Romania took the lead once again. He zipped away, leaving the other, still tired, confused and injured countries behind.

"Hey!" Russia yelled, but looked around at a choking sound. America was safely away in another corner of the room, but he was still bleeding heavily. He ran to his companion, tilting his head back to he could breathe and putting pressure on his neck. "We need to call an ambulance."

"I'm already on it, aru," China said, running out as he heard a siren, trying to flag them down. Germany was trying to attend to Italy and Japan, but Italy followed China, his brother on his mind.

"Love! Lovino!" he yelled, tripping over some rubble. His nose hit the floor and he felt a judder go through his body. Usually he would be crying at this point, but he simply got up and pushed on. Germany was a step behind him, following the distressed man outside. The both of them were covered in blood and dust and spit, but they didn't care. Nearly crashing the doors down, Italy ran around the building until he was on the Magic Club's side.

He stopped.

In the far distance, he could see a figure. It was lying on the ground. He felt his lungs burn and his legs ache - not with running, but with stress and fright and hundreds of other emotions. His mind blurred, and suddenly he wasn't in England. He wasn't standing in the school grounds.

 _"Grandpa Rome! Grandpaaa! Look! I drew a picture!" Italy laughed, running towards where he could see his Grandpa Rome in the distance. He held a picture of an intricate flower, unable to wait to show his granddad, who'd be so proud! He didn't listen to the older countries, who told him not to go. His brother had said so too, but he didn't listen._

 _He finally reached his beloved, loud, laughing granddad, who was lying completely still. Italy shook him, trying to rouse him from his sleep. "Grandpa! Wake up!" he giggled, climbing onto Rome's chest and kissing his cold cheek._ _His cold, cold cheek._

 _Italy screamed._

It took Italy a moment to realize he was screaming again. With more desperation, and growing horror, he ran to his brother, who was lying completely still. "Italien, nein -" Germany tried to protest, attempting to pull his Italian friend back, but Italy easily threw him off, leaning over and kissing his brother's, his lovely, angry, caring brother's cheek.

His cold, cold, cheek.

* * *

Spain bowed his head, trying to mask his tears as Italy's wailing became apparent again. The other nations copied him, all in silent agreement that the moment should be one of respect and mourning. It was strange, to hear Italy's screams of pain and mourning. He had only ever cried at silly things, but this was pure emotion. Emotion that had been locked up too long, hiding away behind a happy mask.

America had long since gone, and so had Iceland and Taiwan. Seychelles was getting a check up after a bullet had grazed his shoulder. China was checking over Japan, who was busy checking everyone else was OK. They jumped when there was a scream.

"Belarus," Russia muttered, and he ran.

* * *

"Daniel? W-What are you doing here? You should be in the afterlife!"

"What am I doing? What... What are you doing, alive? Death should have taken you a long time ago -" the captain, now named as Daniel, stopped when Canada flinched. "No, I didn't mean it like that -"

"I know," Canada interrupted. "I mean, I don't blame you. You're right. I should have died a long time ago.. But I'm not..." he took a deep breath. "I'm not exactly... human...?"

"The hell is going on here, boss? Are we gonna do this or what?" snapped one of the other guys.

Daniel turned white. "Not... Human? How can you not be human - unless you're a demon!" he shouted fearfully. His crewmen stepped back, crossing themselves and lifting up their silver necklaces.

"No, no I'm not a demon, I'm a nation!" he corrected Daniel hurriedly. "I represent a piece of land, and as long as that land lives so will I! I'm a nation!"

"But... But there can't be-"

"Please, I'll explain later. Right now, I could actually use your help," Canada requested urgently. Captain Daniel looked over to Belarus and scowled.

"What, with the little missy?"

"No, we're being attacked - by some very evil people, they've got my friend, who's also a nation like me. I don't know much about it, but we need back up - there's only a few of us and they're incredibly strong!" Canada begged, feeling like his heart was going to burst. He was seeing Daniel again, his best friend, the one who had died trying to save him. Daniel had believed that Canada was going to be attacked and had intercepted his 'attackers' - who were actually just France and members of the French army. Even if they had remained friends, someone was bound to notice the fact that Canada just wasn't aging at all.

It had all gone wrong when Daniel had appeared, furious and ready to fight. Canada's pleas had fallen on deaf ears, and Daniel, while valiantly trying to save his friend, had been shot by one of the soldiers and died in his best friend's arms. The nation had been so upset and half-furious at France for letting it happen he hadn't talked to his carer for days on end, and only when he went back to the harbour, back to place where they had first met, did he fee closure, the sense of finality, that this was actually happening and he could do nothing about it. He hadn't made friends with a human since, still remembering the pain of watching him die.

"In the name of the lord boss! We're getting this over and done with!" roared one of the crewman, and it was too late - they had grabbed the struggling Belarus from behind, and she knew what they were going to do it was too late.

Pain sliced across her tongue as she lost it. She barely noticed the blood filling her mouth, spilling out onto the floor, staining her already-dirty dress. Her eyes stung with tears ready to fall, and they did as she covered her mouth with her hands and screamed, because that was all she could do. No words were formed; she couldn't do that anymore.

The door crashed down and Russia came barreling in, not fast enough, too late to save her. "Belarus! Belarus, talk to me!" he cried, kneeling in the blood in front of her, trying to make her look up so she wouldn't faint from blood loss. But depite his pleas, she could not say a word.

She had no tongue.


	25. Chapter 25

**To Be Cured: 5**

 **Don't Ask Questions: 2**

 **Father, Who Are You?: 1**

 **Again, vote, summaries in chapter 23 blah blah, enjoy! It's a few days late but I couldn't find any magic to help me write - you know when the words just pour out of your fingertips and they just magically form on the page and it's like all your thoughts are in order and nothing could go wrong? That magic.**

Belarus choked on her own blood, even as she heard Daniel yelling at his mates and Canada and Russia's arms gently lifting her up. She coughed, spitting out more of it, hoping that what remained of her tongue would soon crust and harden over, but to no avail - her mouth was wet and still spewing blood. She was already feeling faint, stars and black spots dancing in her eyes, leaning against her former brother. She fought the sensation, not wanting to faint again, or once again wake up in a bed. Russia would not let her participate in what was going on if she was to faint right now. He'd probably lock her in a room somewhere, and she was not having that.

"Hold her still," Sealand ordered, though he was deathly white and looked like he was about to faint any second. "Wh-where's Romania? Or Norway? She needs that... thing... sealed." He almost gagged when more blood spilled out, seeing the whites of Belarus's eyes. She looked almost demonic, hair, clothes and half her face bloody.

"They're gone," came the short reply, and Canada shot him a confused look. "We'll have to hand her over to the medics, but we can't move her too much - she might die from blood loss!"

"We're already here," cried a paramedic, running in. They had a stretcher with them. "Put her on here - sweet mother of God! What happened?!"

"There was a fight - my friend was hurt and so was she," Canada intervened before Sealand could open his mouth. He gestured to France, who was already being taken care of. "We need you to take these people to United Nations Hospital," he continued. He couldn't let the nations go to a normal hospital - there was a special hospital only for nations.

"But - but that's so far away! And -"

"We're government representatives," Sealand piped up. "We need special protection!"

The paramedic blinked at him.

"He - he is here on behalf of Sealand - he insisted on coming," Canada said hurriedly. "They'll let you in once they see your patients, please hurry!"

The paramedic closed her mouth and nodded, turning away and speaking into her walkie-talkie, rerouting the ambulance to the UN Hospital. She didn't know these people, but she had seen their badges, and the fact that neither of them seemed to be from the same country was enough to convince her of their validity. She helped Belarus onto the stretcher, pushing her out with the others, screaming orders as the other paramedics performed emergency stitches on her tongue.

Once she was gone, Canada grabbed Sealand's arm, pulling him back to the main room, Daniel following with his crew. "Guys!" he shouted, coming through the door. Everyone was solemn-faced, even though Italy's screams had been reduced to sobs. "What -"

"One casualty - South Italy," Spain said, his voice cracking. "Many more injuries. And they left."

 _One of these soldiers had begun to shine..._

Canada felt a sudden urgency to get back to his brother's home. He realised what his brother meant about needing to go home - maybe it was tiredness? He didn't push it down though. "Sealand, I think we should go to Uncle America's house," he said to the boy. Sealand looked at him, confused.

"Why?"

"I don't know - I think we should, OK? I need to get you out of the way, before you get hurt," he snapped, then sighed. "Sorry..."

"You're right," Denmark said. "I think we should go to America's house. It's the closest."

"What about -"

"Leave them," Japan interrupted. "Sorrow cannot be avoided. Pain must be felt. There is never another way out. I'm sorry." He too, had a slightly wet face, but he did not let any other emotion show. "We must go. There is still a war to be fought - and people to save." He followed Canada out, who climbed into the car that had arrived for them, the other nations copying as well.

* * *

"Yeargh!" Romania yelled, managing to stop himself from crashing into the side of the building. He was underground somewhere, he knew that. The walls and the floor were wet and slimy, so he was near water. Where exactly, though, he could not identify. He had cast a short spell to take him to the place their bodies were. Now he tried to look for something, anything - a door, a window, something to show him the way. "Norway, you do this one," he said and retreated, letting Norway take a hold of his own body.

Norway pulled a small torch out of his pocket, clicking it on and observing his surroundings. His teeth ached, but thankfully they were not bleeding anymore. His body felt bruised but he supposed that came with fighting a vicious enemy. He pushed on through the seaweed on the ground and the wet, misty cobwebs that hung above.

If he was being honest with himself, he kind of wished he was back at home, not facing this. He wanted to make sure Iceland was all right but he knew that he was in the safe hands of the other nations. He sighed wearily, thoughts straying to Denmark. He had only glimpsed him once during the fight, and to see him fighting so furiously, like he was back in the days of more war and less politics, had seriously turned him on. He would definitely get that man covered in blood and holding a sword more often...

"Eeeeew!" complained Romania from inside his head. "We can hear your thoughts No-chan! That's weird!"

"Oh shut up you brat! We're in the middle of a war!"

"You only like what No-chan is imagining because you're into a blonde too!"

"Bloody Romani! I'll kill you!"

"Not the time guys," Norway murmured, entering a control room. There was no one in there, thankfully, so he paused, gazing down at the controls. He clicked a few buttons, staring at them confusedly, not really sure what he should do. England had described them being stuck in a room - and 2P America had spoken to them, so must have been a microphone, which there was. If he spoke to them here, then he should be able to see them, right?

"Come on, fucktards! Why are you walking so fucking slowly?!"

"Shut up, bitch!"

"Oh my precious baby what did my evil other self do to you? Oh jammy wammy..."

"Dad, please, stop..."

"Sfarzoso! Put me down and let me kill him!"

"Nein, Italien..."

"Hehehehe! Marikaya chikyuu -"

"Will you shut it, Kuro! You've been singing them goddamn lyrics since we arrived here!"

Norway bolted through the other doors, quickly doing a concealment spell so he was covered up. He sneaked silently through, looking through every door to try and find their bodies. "I'm going to back with the others once we explode," he murmured quietly.

"Make sure America is safe, and Canada, France too!"

"Moldova, don't let Moldova come to any harm - we'll get to you as fast as possible!"

"Amonor, Jack and Tinkerbell need to be contacted as well..."

"Ye -" he was thrown back by a torrent of water as it spilled out into the corridor, wetting him and increasing the headache he had tenfold. "Ouch..."

"Our bodies, get in there!" England hissed urgently.

"HEY! We know you're there, Magic Trio!"

"Arrgh..." Norway groaned, beginning to feel his body heat up. He was in pain, but he dragged himself into the room England and Romania had been in, spotting Romania's body lying not far off. His breath began to speed up; his clothes began to itch; his eyes starting to burn with the light that was coming off his body. It came in short bursts as the magical separation began.


	26. Chapter 26

**To Be Cured: 7**

 **Don't Ask Questions: 3**

 **Father, Who Are You?: 1**

 **Vote on what story you want blablah you guys get the deal.**

"Ah -ah," groaned Norway, trying to reach Romania's body. His hand, curled in pain, stretched out blindly, reaching for Romania's body. He knew the pain would lessen if he managed to return Romania to his body before the release of energy. He heard footsteps behind him, and laughter.

"Hey! Look at this fucker!" Allen yelled, kicking Norway, who barely noticed, the pain from the separation taking over every fibre of his being. He gritted his teeth against the screams he could hear coming from England and Romania, letting out a grunt as Allen flipped him over. "What, bitch? Can't move anymore?"

"Ally..."

"Haha! Stupid 1P, think you're so fancy with all your magic shit -"

"Cupcake -"

"And your fucking spells, but look at ya now! And if that little whore England can hear me," Allen sneered, unaware of the growing horror on Oliver's face, "Then you can tell him that the little slut Belarus ain't gonna be around much longer... We found the keeeey!"

"ALLEN FELICITY JONES!" screamed Oliver. Allen scowled and dropped Norway, who simply lay still, preparing his mind for separation. The other 2P's had simply abandoned Allen and Oliver (Francois had dragged Matt out, despite his yells and protests), and it was now Allen realised the situation. "RUN!"

* * *

There was silence in the packed cars as the tired, emotionally worn but thankfully unharmed nations arrived at America's house. Some sighed at the chance to stretch their cramped legs, having been stuck in a car for a few hours, while others were reluctant to move, simply falling asleep on the spot. It was with a cry of relief they stumbled into America' home, collapsing onto the sofas and chairs or the soft carpet on the stairs and into the bedrooms.

Instantly, Seychelles, Hong Kong and Ukraine fell asleep; Turkey and Greece watched over them while Korea was silent, weaving through the solemn nations like a ghost, offering a pat on the back, tissues, and some of France's and Spain's hastily made food. "Hey, we're all alive!" he exclaimed cheerfully, and there were a few tired smiles, but nothing beyond that; the saddest of their number had finally come through the door, and it was a face that usually smiled and laughed and was adored by all, whether secretly or openly - Italy.

He didn't say a word but accepted the warmth Austria and Hungary provided him when they held him close. Germany, not being good at emotional situations, simply stood by, before going for a moment, and coming back with a sheet of paper. Many paid little interest to him, only looking up when they realised he had taped the Italian flag above the fire. Greece shut the curtains and turned the lights to a low setting, setting the perfect atmosphere.

Spain was first to go up and stick a picture of a scowling Romano on the side of the flag. Others simply placed pictures that they carried with them that often had Romano and Italy running to/away from something in the background, or proper photos of the two. Soon, the mantelpiece was full of photos. Austria and Hungary sat Italy down, bringing their hands together in prayer. The other nations, even if they weren't Christian, copied them, until the room was full of bowed heads and clasped hands. Germany stood at the front, holding up his iron cross.

 _Support us, O Lord,_  
 _all the day long of this troublous life,_  
 _until the shadows lengthen and the evening comes,_  
 _the busy world is hushed,_  
 _the fever of life is over_  
 _and our work is done._  
 _Then, Lord, in your mercy grant us a safe lodging,_  
 _a holy rest, and peace at the last;_  
 _through Christ our Lord._

"Amen."

 _Grant us, Lord,_  
 _the wisdom and the grace_  
 _to use aright the time_  
 _that is left to us on earth._  
 _Lead us to repent of our sins,_  
 _the evil we have done_  
 _and the good we have not done;_  
 _and strengthen us to follow the steps of your Son,_  
 _in the way that leads to the fullness of eternal life;_  
 _through Jesus Christ our Lord._

"Amen."

 _Father of all,_  
 _by whose mercy and grace_  
 _your saints remain in everlasting light and peace:_  
 _we remember with thanksgiving_  
 _those whom we love but see no longer;_  
 _and we pray that in them_  
 _your perfect will may be fulfilled;_  
 _through Jesus Christ our Lord._

"Amen."

 _Eternal Lord God, you hold all souls in life:_  
 _shed forth, we pray,_  
 _upon your whole Church in paradise and on earth_  
 _the bright beams of your light and heavenly comfort;_  
 _and grant that we,_  
 _following the good example of those who have loved_  
 _and served you here and are now at rest,_  
 _may at the last enter with them_  
 _into the fullness of your eternal joy;_  
 _through Jesus Christ our Lord._

"Amen."

"In peace let us pray to the Lord," Germany murmured.

 _Jesus, bread from heaven,_  
 _you satisfy the hungry with good things:_  
 _grant us a share with all the faithful departed_  
 _in the banquet of your kingdom. Hear us, risen Lord,_

"Our resurrection and our life," the Christian nations continued. Those who weren't Christian remained silent, but silently listened to the prayers of Romano's religion.

 _Show your mercy to the dying;_  
 _strengthen them with hope,_  
 _and fill them with the peace and joy of your presence._

 _Lord, in your mercy_

"Hear our prayer."

 _Lord, we commend all those who have died to your unfailing love,_  
 _that in them your will may be fulfilled;_  
 _and we pray that we may share with them in your eternal kingdom;_  
 _through Jesus Christ our Lord._

"Amen."


	27. Chapter 27

_Guys, are you ready?_

 _As ready as I'll ever be._

 _I... I guess so._

 _This is it. England, you know what will happen right? I think we're right underneath London._

 _Yes... Unfortunately I do._

Norway screamed.

* * *

As Germany finished his prayer, he looked up. His eyes met Italy's, and he took a step back, hitting the mantelpiece.

Italy's eyes were a deep amber, beautifully shining, even in the dim light. They glowed like jewels, disappearing and reappearing as he blinked, gazing straight at Germany. Once, perhaps, those wondrous eyes had been full of innocence, love, hope; but now they were full of pain, and despair. From the very depths of the amber, anyone could see the reflection of a man, a country, hardened by war and loss. Germany was unable to tear his stare off of him.

"Luddy," he whispered, tilting his head and smiling a sad smile. "Thank you. Ti amo, Luddy."

"Ich liebe dich, Feli," he whispered back. Italy broke free of Hungary and Austria's embrace, going up to Germany and hugging him almost tenderly. Germany tried to put the same tenderness back into the hug, pressing his lips against Italy's hair in a soft, but awkward, gesture of affection. Italy gripped him a bit tighter, sighing. The other countries were looking up by now.

"I could stay like this forever, in your arms."

"So could I, Feli."

"Uh, guys?" Reluctantly, they broke apart, looking up at Canada. "What... Is this?" It was a toy soldier, glowing brightly. "I - I mean, I know what it is, but England never made them glow... It's not possible..." Canada turned over the piece of history in his hands, for once the centre of attention. "I remember he made these for u-"

In a sudden motion, everyone in the building was suddenly flying through the air - along with the rest of the house. Canada looked around as gravity worked, landing - rather surprisingly to him - on his feet. He could see the other countries, bruised and bloody and beaten from the force of _whatever the hell that was,_ but he couldn't hear them. Germany's mouth was moving, grabbing his leg and shaking it, trying to stop the bleeding from the side of his body, but Canada couldn't hear it.

He looked up to see 8 or 9 figures he knew very well by now approaching. The one that looked like his brother was shouting something at him - pointing at him - to the toy soldier, which was still glowing. His grip tightened on it, and he hesitated, looking back down at Germany. In a very clear lip movement, he screamed "RUN!"

Canada turned and bolted into the forest, unable to hear the screams of frustration from the second players... or the screams of pain from his fellow countries as they lay defenceless against the 2P's attacks.

* * *

The first thing England did when he woke up was expel all of the water from his lungs. He struggled for a moment, to take a breath in, choking on his own air and violently coughing and shivering. He could see Romania doing the same thing, and tried to crawl over to him, trying to make his aching bones work with his now active brain, trying to reach his only friend. He winced on seeing flashes of blue and red - the police.

"N-no," choked England, fumbling for a badge in his jacket and showing it to them. "Get away..."

"Sir, you need help!" cried one of the men, trying to get him up. Humans, England thought, they always have good intentions, but end up doing the wrong thing.

"Gate... Get to gate.." Romania choked as well.

"I think they're delirious," one paramedic said seriously, ignoring the protests of the two struggling nations. "We need to get to hospital. Subdue that one," he added, pointing at England, who was thrashing and screaming, not quite fully active.

"This is Inspector Daniels, I think we need to cordon off the area," he started into his radio, before it was grabbed by England.

"Code 4356," he said, before succumbing to the darkness of anaesthetics.

* * *

The prime minister jumped on hearing rumbling outside her office. "What in causation!" she cried, watching as the entire Home Office and Foreign Office crashed onto her desk. "What on earth has brought this about?"

One person shoved a slip towards her. Her eyes widened. "Have you called - "

"We've already sectioned off the nation's houses and got backup to America's house - "

"Backup?! Why?!"

"There's an altercation happening between the nations and hostiles..."

* * *

"FUCK THIS!" Allen screamed, stopped again in his plight to intercept Canada as a soldier stepped in front of him. He tried to hit the soldier, ignoring the bullets that pierced his shoulder from behind, watching his prize disappear into the woods.

It looked like a full out war scene, with medics on the ground, attending to the wounded nations, covered by armed soldiers, who shot at any 2P coming near. How the soldiers knew that these were hostiles and the injured weren't was a mystery to them - all they knew was that they felt drawn to the wounded nations, and repelled by the 2Ps. They did everything to keep them away, but it simply wasn't working, they were strong and fast, and like Allen, some were extremely furious. They were already having to call back up.

Italy lay to the side of this mess, staring up to the sky, shaking - whether it was from blood loss, shock, or both, he didn't know.

"I'm coming, Lovino..."

 **And I'm back! *gets various things thrown at her* OK, jeez! I'm sorry! I know I haven't updated in a long time, but I've been really working on this story - I swear, I've been here everyday, and now I've got it all written out. So enjoy the rest...**

 **SPOILERS: ship war gets real in a couple of chapters.**


	28. Chapter 28

Canada tore through the woods, the glowing soldier still in hand. He couldn't hear the pounding of his feet, or the strange noises coming from the forest, or the slight hiss as the soldier glowed brighter. He could't hear the roar of an angry 2P who was trying to follow him, but was constantly blocked. He couldn't hear the war that was fast fading behind him as he got further and further away.

He knew something was wrong - and not just with his hearing, with England and Belarus, and the attacks - the strange roars and noises, the talking to thin air, the tight-lipped prime ministers, and of course, Norway's undoubted recognition of these hostiles - meaning they'd been here before.

But when? And where? And why were they so obsessed with the toy soldier? He glanced down at it, slowing down as he did. He contemplated throwing it away. Just to hurl it into the depths of the forest where it would never be found. But then he thought of all those good times he and America had spent playing with those soldiers... How they were lovingly carved by England for them both... People thought England was a bad carer because he didn't notice Canada a lot, but he never failed to make him feel loved when he did see him.

Canada sighed, beginning to run again, making sure to stay on the path. He had it drilled into his brain as a child: _Stay on the path. Never leave the path._ He wasn't sure what lay in the forest, but he sure didn't want to find out. He glanced behind him to check if anyone was following him...

... Crashing straight into some guy running in the opposite direction as him. "Ow, eh!" Canada yelled, but his grip on the toy didn't loosen.

The man looked down at him, noticing the soldier before helping him up. His mouth moved but Canada couldn't understand a word he was saying. He looked more closely at the man's lips, trying to make out the words. "I'm - I'm deaf, I think," he said.

The man didn't look surprised. _My name is Amonor,_ he signed. _You are Canada, England's colony._

Canada nodded suspiciously, taking a step back, contemplating where to run. Amonor noticed, because he signed again. _Don't be afraid, I am an ally of England's. My army and I were just coming to help you._

So this was the mysterious army Belarus was supplying! He held up the soldier. "Do you know what this is?" he asked. Amonor's eyes widened. _You have the key to the gate! Did England give it to you?_

"No, I found it in America's house. England is in hospital," replied Canada. Amonor cursed (Canada didn't need to see any sign language for that!). "What is the gate?"

 _It is a portal between worlds and universes. But no time to talk. We must to England's side._

"Right," Canada said, deciding to follow this mysterious man. It was the best chance he had at keeping the soldier - the key - safe. Amonor shouted instructions to his army, before turning in the direction Canada was going and beginning to run. Canada followed.

A girl suddenly swooped down on them, making the area seem a lot hotter. "Where are they?!" she yelled. She was dressed in a fiery red dress, with freckles and frizzy red hair to match.

"Over there, Seana!" Amonor called, pointing to the army. She let out a battle cry, zooming over the army and towards the war zone. "Let's go!"

* * *

Romania gasped suddenly on waking up, taking in mouthfuls of air, precious air like he had never breathed before. His lungs felt wet and slimy (probably from being filled with water) but he didn't feel that bad overall. He looked around, to see England lying next to him, still out. He struggled up, going to the window on shaky legs, looking down at the mass destruction below.

The magical separation had caused an explosion - and he was right, it had been directly under the Thames (where else would there be that much water?). Now there was a massive hole in the middle of the Thames, not to mention the damage to the pavement and land was causing a stir as people took photos and tried to get away. The streets were flooded with water, spilling over into buildings, some even giving away, already weakened by the previous explosion and flying debris. Police cars and army cars were trying to keep the situation under control, but it was hard when you didn't quite know what the situation was.

Suddenly, he saw two heads, quite literally flying towards him. People pointed and screamed at them, and Romania managed to dive under the window before they came crashing in, shattering the glass. That woke England up, who sat up and stared in alarm at the two figures.

"Canada? Amonor?!"


	29. Chapter 29

"England!" cried Canada, and for a wonderful moment, he felt like a child again, when England's presence was always soothing and wonderful to him.

"Canada, what are you - Amonor?! What's happening?" England cried, but he made no move to get out of bed.

"They've intercepted America's house - a fight is happening there right now, England they said they'd -"

"Located the key? I know, Allen told us. What happened?!"

"America, Iceland, France and Belarus are somewhere in this hospital as well, the school and half of London has gone up in flames and debris, there's a full out war zone in Embassy Street and South Italy... South Italy is dead..." Canada whispered the last part, and England covered his mouth.

"No... Not Lovino..."

"You knew him?" Amonor said softly, his face sympathetic.

"I - He was a massive fan of Sherlock and Victorian culture... Not to mention we're both what Japan calls tsundere..." England smiled sadly. "There's no way of bringing him back?"

"None. Italy himself confirmed it."

"Oh god..." Romania said softly. "How did it ever come to this?"

Silence washed over them, before it was broken again by England. He swung his legs off the bed, getting up. "We need to get the key," he said determinedly.

"That won't be a problem," Canada said, feeling slightly proud as he held up the soldier and watched England's jaw drop in surprise.

"I have rallied my forces to join the fight as well," Amonor added. Romania nodded, and went over to the phone. England ignored him, managing to walk out of the room, gesturing for Amonor and Canada to follow. Amonor stopped a nurse. "Young lady, perhaps you can assist us - we are looking for some government representatives."

"Should you even be out of bed?" the girl said dubiously.

"We're code 4356," England said and the girl nodded, eyes widening. She led them to a private room where the nations were wide awake, looking at each other and discussing everything.

"Arthur!" Belarus tried to say, but was massively hindered by her tongue. She was fighting to stay conscious. She babbled a little more, then tried to fight him when he put the morphine up, sending her right back into unconsciousness.

England turned to the gathered nations - his only allies right now. They all looked back at him, waiting for instruction. Suddenly, he felt like an empire again, giving orders and leading the world, and he bit back the urge to smile or laugh.

"Amonor, take Canada and get to the gate. Use the key to deactivate - Amonor will show you how, Canada - then destroy it once you're finished. America, France, if you're up for it, I need you to rejoin the fight - co-ordinate your attacks - get your army involved. Romania," he said to the returning nation.

"I've called the vampire squad. They're sending help," he said.

"Great. Take Iceland and get to the meet point."

"The meet point doesn't sound like the fight," Iceland said dangerously. England winced.

"Norway would flip if he ever - "

"Well don't let him find out," Iceland said ferociously, "France, you're with me. Let's leave lover boy." He grabbed France's arm and went out.

"Lover boy?" Romania said, amused.

"Anyway," America said loudly, "What next?"

"Fine. America, Romania, we're going to get Norway and then we'll get back to the fight. You with me?"

"Always," America said instantly, and England smiled.

* * *

Germany roared, smashing a block over the heads of the oncoming 2P's. There seemed to be more of them now, more had heeded the call of their allies and had come to assist them in destroying London.

London herself was there, black curly hair in a signature bun, dark skin shining beautifully as she fought hard and fast, taking out what looked to be her opposite, who had bright yellow hair and golden skin. Germany wasn't focused on that though - all he could think about was Italy.

"ITALY!"

"GERMANY!"

Germany ran in the direction of the call, feeling a searing pain go up his leg. He yelled as he went down, his nose colliding painfully with the pavement. In an instant there was an officer covering him - but he was knocked down as 2P!Italy slit his throat. "Well, well, look what we have here," he sneered.

Italy, still somewhere in the distance, let out another desperate scream. That fuelled Germany more and he pushed off his pain, getting back up again. 2P!Italy grabbed him quickly, but Germany was a lot stronger than the other nation, and he managed to throw him off, whirling to face him off.

It was almost painful how much like Italy this one looked. Germany instantly knew that he wouldn't be able to fight him off, not when his ears were full of Italy's screaming and 2P!Italy was looking at him like that... Wait... What?

2P!Italy glanced at Germany, looking more and more conflicted, his eyes flicking to his Germany fighting somewhere off to the side. 2P!Italy and his own counterpart were in love... "Just turn around so I can kill you!" snapped 2P!Italy angrily. Germany crossed his arms, glaring at him.

"If you want to kill me, look me in the eye and do it," he said quietly.

There was no time for a response, because a second later a grenade was thrown, blowing them off their feet. Germany groaned as he landed again, this time his arm smashed onto the street. He saw some terrified spectators, some of whom were probably tourists. "Get out of here!" he yelled, trying to think of a valid excuse. "Terrorists! Terrorist attack! RUN!" They needed no more encouraging, and fled between the ranks of the army. Germany unsteadily got to his feet again, locating a head of red hair.

He would get to Italy, even if it killed him.


	30. Chapter 30

Canada smashed his fist into the wall, watching hundreds of years of artwork shatter and fall in an instant. He felt a bit guilty at that, knowing England would be devastated at the loss of his history, but it couldn't be helped. He had lost Amonor sometime back in this maze, when they had got separated by some waiting soldiers, some of whom reminded Canada of nations (and they probably were). He checked the glowing soldier again, which burned more brightly than ever.

At this, he pushed on, not letting himself stop, backtracking when the glow faded, running forwards when it brightened. He crashed into Amonor - again, and the two made their way through the maze successfully, with no more run ins from the 2Ps. Canada was just thinking that it was too good to be true, when he crashed into Amonor, who had stopped.

A giant sphinx sat before them, regarding them carefully. Canada groaned. He spoke too soon.

* * *

The President was not having a good day.

Their closest allies, France, Russia, Canada and England were all having some full out war on Embassy street in the UK. Not to mention his own nation was demanding that the attorney general come up with a battle plan to help defeat what he was calling super-soldiers. Not only had he refused, but he had barred his own nation from going back to Embassy Street in case he got hurt again, if the bandage on his neck told him anything. America was frustrated and angry, but kept his lips sealed about the whole situation.

He had tried calling the Norwegian and Romanian prime ministers, but they had all called him some nasty things in their own languages and hung up as fast as possible to focus on the miniature war. Now he was trying to make a press statement, but it was not helped by America's hysterical claims that the British needed help and they weren't being good allies. Not to mention he had outed himself as a nation to his people, and begged them to see reason. And of course, the believed him and supported him.

But still, the president refused to participate in a war he could barely understand.

"For gods sake, Mr President, my love could be dying out there and you aren't doing a damn thing!" screeched America at the president, over the yells of the people as they sided with their nation.

"Did you just call UK your lover?" he said incredulously. America turned bright red but before he could stammer out an excuse, the Norwegian prime minister had burst in, looking dishevelled and incredibly angry. She ran forwards, grabbing the President by his suit and lifting him a few centimetres off the ground as she shook him.

"If - you - don't - help - our - allies - I - will - kill - you - personally!" she screamed, shaking him between each word. "The otherworld nations are winning! We need your help, you - " and she let out a string of Norwegian curses. "I've rallied the Nordic nations but it's not enough, you must help!"

"We are!" America yelled, pulling out his gun. "Where's the battle?! Let's go already!" The two hurtled out, leaving behind the very confused president and a dumbfounded press.

* * *

England directed Moldova to the sandbags, even as he lifted one up himself, legs still shaking. Norway was muttering magic spells, spellbook in front of him, trying to put up a protective shield over Embassy street, to limit the damage done, and England, Moldova and Romania were creating a physical barrier to stop people wondering in (as some idiots had tried to do). He briefly wondered if Canada and Amonor had found the final barrier yet, and prayed that they overcome it quickly.

He let out a gasp when a portal appeared before him, pouring directly onto Embassy Street. Soldiers began pouring out, instantly going for England's own soldiers. He abandoned the sandbags and blasted a silent spell to block up the portal with earth, just as Romania did it with fire and Norway did it with ice. He continued blocking it up, eyes searching the sky for another portal, willing Amonor and Canada to hurry up.

The first gate had been opened...


End file.
